Fly, cherokee, fly - Chris d'Lacey

I lifted Cherokee up to the sky. She cocked her head at the passing clouds, her dark blue neck feathers ruffling in the breeze. I could feel the beat of her heart in my hands and her warm toes scratching against my skin. I waited for an upward gust of wind and then, slowly, I parted my hands. Fly, I whispered. Cherokee! Fly! And she was gone...

When Darryl discovers a homing pigeon with a broken wing in the park, he manages to persuade his parents to let him keep it - and suddenly he has a new and captivating hobby. If he can help the pigeon - Cherokee - learn to fly again, maybe he could even race her! There's just one problem: Cherokee's original owner. Will he want her back? As the bird courageously fights past the broken wing to fly again, Darryl is also to need every ounce of his own courage - to stand firm against a bully, whose threats could lead to Darryl's losing Cherokee for ever...