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It is the summer and a group of children are playing down by a stream when they do a terrible thing. Something that Birdy tries unsuccesfully to avert. While the other children in the gang find it easy to forget what they have done, Birdy is trapped in the moment and feels bound to do something to make ammends. But how does a child face up to responsibility and find the courage to do the right thing?An uncompromising and uniquely powerful novel about growing up, making friends and being true to yourself.

There is the secret of Birdy's grandmother's cat. How the boys tortured it and Birdy had to drown it in the river. There's the secret of Mrs. Cope, the popular teacher who took advantage of Birdy. And the secret of the gypsy girl at school who Birdy likes, but can't talk about. Because Birdy's other secret is that while she fights as good as the boys, she is a girl. In this funny and sad portrayal of a young person growing up in an imperfect family, every reader will recognise in Birdy their own struggle to find their place in the world.