Gwen the Rescue Hen is a fantastic children's book that teaches kids to see animals as friends rather than food. With beautiful illustrations by Sonja Stangl, and a charming and whimsical story by Leslie Crawford, Gwen is the perfect book for children of many different ages. The story begins with Gwen dreaming of flying, of escaping the dark world of factory farming, tight cages, and an eventual trip to the slaughterhouse. The book begins in stark black and white, and as Gwen's world grows the book explodes into color--a detail that is made even better by the fact that chickens can see four wavelengths of color, compared to humans' three. As Gwen's world explodes with color, it also becomes full of friends, mostly a young boy named Mateo. This relationship is sweet, and is even sweeter when, at the end of the book, Mateo unites Gwen with her friends from her flock. This book is a perfect balance of an entertaining story about a chicken's adventures, while also being an excellent entry point into talking about the more difficult aspects of climate change with children. My favorite part is the facts at the end of the book, which give more fun facts about chickens and really inform how amazing these creatures truly are.