The Girl and the Animal Map

Mira, a eight-year-old girl living in a small village at the edge of a green wood, loves observing the animals near her home. With her canvas satchel of rolled maps, colored pencils tucked behind her ear, and always-muddy yellow rain boots, she walks to the village edge every morning with Grandpa Joseph, who teaches her to read the tiny tracks and signs that animals leave behind.

One day Mira decides to draw an animal map, marking the hedge where Pip the robin nests, the pond where frogs croak among the lily pads, and the narrow deer path through the woods. When Neighbor Hana sees the map, she is astonished at how many animals live so close, and gathers the villagers. Mira explains each symbol, and the community begins to protect the nesting spots, clean the pond, and keep the deer path quiet. This gentle story by Aysel Banu YAVUZAL follows Mira as her careful observation brings a whole village together, and it closes with a nature day at school where she shows other children how to spot animal signs and draw maps of their own. The tale can be read on Masal İzle.