Australian couple Cameron and Sam Bloom were travelling with their three boys in Thailand when a near-fatal fall left Sam paralysed and deeply depressed. After months in hospitals and a spinal unit she moved home to Sydney's Northern Beaches. Not long after a magpie, which had fallen out of the nest, came to live with them.
Her young sons called the bird 'Penguin' their honorary sister. Cameron Bloom is a photographer and he recorded Penguin's interactions with the family. Via Instagram, Penguin became a social media sensation. Now the book Penguin Bloom has been released, cataloguing family life with a resident magpie, and the family and Sam dealing with her paralysis.
Cameron and Sam Bloom talk with Kathryn Ryan about how nursing a quirky baby magpie helped their family through dark days.
