A young boy leaves sunny Italy for a small town in Wales. Far from everything he knows, he feels displaced and deeply homesick. Then he meets Mr. Evans, who keeps racing pigeons. Through caring for the birds, the boy finds purpose and connection. One pigeon in particular, King of the Sky, becomes special. Released in Rome, the bird makes its long journey back to Wales – back to him. In that return, the boy understands that home is no longer a place left behind, but the place where he now belongs. Selected for the 2026 Reader’s Bookshelf children’s list under the theme “The Home We Carry,” this gentle and touching story is an invitation to reflect on what home truly means.
“Just one thing reminded me of home – Of sunlight, fountains, and the vanilla smell of ice cream in my nonna’s gelateria. It was Mr. Evans’s pigeons in their loft behind my house, cooing as if they strutted in St. Peter’s Square in Rome.”
