Strange Birds — Judith Heide Gilliland

On Monday, eleven-year-old Anna is a perfectly happy child.
In a few days, her parents will return from their sailing trip and
give her a horse of her own! The terrible news arrives on
Tuesday, sweeping over Anna like a dense fog: her parents are
lost at sea. Things get worse. Cold-hearted Aunt Formaldy
becomes Anna's guardian and exiles her to a tiny sewing room.
Anna is numb with grief; her only place of respite is a
mysterious tree right outside her window. But when the tree
becomes home to a herd of miniature winged horses whose
existence becomes threatened, because of traitors and villains,
Anna must act. Discovering that the tree's “nutberries” can
make her as tiny as the horses themselves, she risks becoming
miniature and leads her beloved horses on an amazing journey
that will change her life forever.

With its courageous young heroine and distinctive storytelling
voice, this empowering, contemporary fantasy will captivate
and inspire young readers.