Chance Meetings

Every line of "Chance Meetings" by V. Bianki, the well-known writer of children's books, shows a love of nature study and exploration. "The Little Sea-Devil" was not chosen at random by the author as an introduction to this collection of stories. The concluding words of this story might refer to the entire book --anyhow-- there was a limitless sky above and bottomless seas and oceans below, and the great world all around was full of undiscovered secrets. All my life I am going to discover them because nothing on earth is such fun as that."The message of "Chance Meetings" is: Man is a friend of nature. Man's keen eye and his protective hand cherish nature. Man, the master of the world, destroys only what is evil and predatory ("Julbars,""Gophers," "How Uncle Volov Hunted Wolves"). But what sad mistakes we sometimes make through ignorance! In "Pale Rose and Olive Green," little boys, in destroying birds? nest, kill one of the loveliest creatures on earth -- the nightingale. And the swan, that marvelous bird of the forest wilds, is brutally shot down by a poacher, in violation of our game laws made to preserve the animal world. Bianki does not show us the criminal -- he only describes the death of the swan. But the story grips us by the wrath and contempt directed against people who are not only ignorant, but also greedy, egoistic, indifferent and, therefore, enemies of society.What V. Bianki wants us to remember is the joy of discovering the secrets of nature. The inquiring mind of man will always find the key to nature's magic doors if only he knows how to look for it!Bianki says to the young naturalist to whom the book is dedicated --and not to a young naturalist alone, but to all young people with inquiring minds, "all your life you must preserve your young, keen eye to the world; you must keep a loving heart. Only then will you be able to take joy in the lovely green world of which you are the masters."Bianki, V. is the author of 'Chance Meetings' with ISBN 9781589633865 and ISBN 1589633865.