Looking for an old children's story about a gosling left behind during migration who learns to survive and reunites with
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1niazi
I'm trying to identify a children's story I read in English before 2010, though the story itself may be much older.
It was part of a story collection/anthology, not necessarily a standalone book. I do not remember the title, author, or exact character names.
What I remember with fairly high confidence:
* The protagonist was a young bird, most likely a gosling, wild goose, or another migratory bird.
* It had siblings.
* Its mother loved it very much and was extremely protective.
* She fed it herself and did not let it do things independently.
* Because of this, the young bird became dependent and afraid, especially afraid of flying.
* Migration season arrived.
* The siblings could migrate, but the protagonist could not fly properly at all.
* The mother eventually left with the flock.
* The protagonist was left behind.
* It survived through a difficult period (possibly winter or freezing weather).
* A flock of other adult birds (possibly crows, ravens, or similar birds, though I'm not certain) helped teach it survival skills.
* They taught it things like flying and finding food.
* Over time it matured, became independent, and earned the respect of the flock.
* Near the end, it reunited with its original family/mother.
One scene I remember particularly strongly:
I think the mother was calling out for the protagonist by name, something like:
"Little Fluffy! Little Fluffy!"
I am NOT sure that "Little Fluffy" was the actual title. It may have been the protagonist's nickname or what the mother called it.
Additional details:
* The story felt old-fashioned even when I read it.
* It may have been translated from Russian, Soviet/Ukrainian, Chinese, or another non-English source.
* The tone was emotional and educational rather than comedic.
* The lesson seemed to be about independence, maturity, and not overprotecting children.
Does this sound familiar to anyone?
It was part of a story collection/anthology, not necessarily a standalone book. I do not remember the title, author, or exact character names.
What I remember with fairly high confidence:
* The protagonist was a young bird, most likely a gosling, wild goose, or another migratory bird.
* It had siblings.
* Its mother loved it very much and was extremely protective.
* She fed it herself and did not let it do things independently.
* Because of this, the young bird became dependent and afraid, especially afraid of flying.
* Migration season arrived.
* The siblings could migrate, but the protagonist could not fly properly at all.
* The mother eventually left with the flock.
* The protagonist was left behind.
* It survived through a difficult period (possibly winter or freezing weather).
* A flock of other adult birds (possibly crows, ravens, or similar birds, though I'm not certain) helped teach it survival skills.
* They taught it things like flying and finding food.
* Over time it matured, became independent, and earned the respect of the flock.
* Near the end, it reunited with its original family/mother.
One scene I remember particularly strongly:
I think the mother was calling out for the protagonist by name, something like:
"Little Fluffy! Little Fluffy!"
I am NOT sure that "Little Fluffy" was the actual title. It may have been the protagonist's nickname or what the mother called it.
Additional details:
* The story felt old-fashioned even when I read it.
* It may have been translated from Russian, Soviet/Ukrainian, Chinese, or another non-English source.
* The tone was emotional and educational rather than comedic.
* The lesson seemed to be about independence, maturity, and not overprotecting children.
Does this sound familiar to anyone?
2glaciergoat
Might be featured somewhere in the series Folk Tales from the Soviet Union. I did a little looking and apparently these anthologies were big in school libraries/book fairs.
3Nooiniin
Favorite children's stories from China has a story with a little duckling whose mother repeatedly calls him, "Little Fluffy! Little Fluffy!". There's a swimming competition of geese and ducks, but no migration, so that's probably not it.
