A Kestrel Called Doris is the true story of a fragile kestrel who arrived in my life — and how, through patience and partnership, she became a bridge between the wild and the vulnerable. From rehabilitation to care‑home visits,

Doris reveals how healing can move in unexpected directions, often from feathers to human hands. This is a book about trust, dignity, and the profound emotional impact a single bird can have on people who believed they had nothing left to connect with.

BOOK EXTRACTS

Extract — Chapter 1: Doris Arrives

She arrived on a grey morning, small enough to vanish inside the travel box yet somehow filling the room the moment I lifted the lid. Her eyes were the first thing I noticed — dark, steady, and carrying the quiet defiance of a bird who had learned not to trust easily.

Her feathers were duller than they should have been, her frame too light. She held herself tightly, every muscle coiled. I didn’t speak. I simply let her look at me, measure me, decide whether I was another problem to endure.

When she finally shifted her weight, it was the smallest movement — but it was a beginning.

Extract — Chapter 3: Into the Care Home

Doris entered the care home like a visitor inspecting unfamiliar territory. Her head moved in those precise, mechanical arcs, taking in wheelchairs, soft lighting, and the quiet murmur of residents.

A man who had spent most of the morning staring at the floor lifted his head and whispered, “Kestrel.” Doris didn’t flinch. She simply watched him, steady and calm, and something in the room shifted. By the time we left, the atmosphere felt lighter. Doris shook out her feathers at the door, a small punctuation mark to the visit.