Hummer & The Boy by VIENNE REA

Some books you read. This one stays with you.

Hummer & The Boy is one of the most tender, soul-stirring stories about friendship I have ever read.

It begins so simply, so purely. Emmett is just five and a half when he meets a lone Canada goose by the lake near his home. No flock. Just one solitary goose, standing apart. In that instant, something clicks – a quiet recognition between two souls. Because of the soft sound the goose makes, Emmett names him Hummer.

And then begins the most beautiful friendship.

Year after year, season after season, Hummer returns. And Emmett returns too. What begins as a little boy sharing stories about his class and toys gradually becomes something deeper: a teenager opening up about basketball games, friendships, difficult choices, heartbreaks, and hopes. Hummer doesn’t need to respond; he simply listens. He is steady, faithful, and present.

This is what makes this book so extraordinary. On the surface, it’s a story a child will adore – a boy and a wild goose, a friendship that defies nature. But for an adult reading it, it becomes something else entirely. It becomes a story about what it means to love someone through all the seasons of growing up. About devotion that doesn’t ask for anything. About compassion, about forgiveness, about the way love remains even when we have to say goodbye.

The illustrations are breathtaking – quiet, spacious, and full of emotion. You can feel the chill of the lake, the passing of time, the ache of waiting and the pure joy of reunion. It gently opens the door to conversations we all need to have – about loyalty, about change, about loss, healing, and how the ones we love never truly leave us.

A timeless, unforgettable story about a love that migrates but never leaves.

Grab your copy from Amazon.