Book Review: Birdology

The title held so much promise, "Birdology - Adventures with a Pack of Hens, a Peck of Pigeons, Cantankerous Crows, Fierce Falcons, Hip Hop Parrots, Baby Hummingbirds, and One Murderously Big Living Dinosaur".  Wow, this sounded like it was going to be one interesting look into birds of all kinds.

And so the journey began - from New England to Australia to Indiana and back.  In other words, all over the place, as the title implies.  Birdology has some fascinating segments, such as the chapter introducing me to the Cassowary of Australia, a prehistoric-like bird with a killer claw on feet as big as a human.  After looking at chickadees all day, the Cassowary was hard to even visualize!  It was much easier to relate to the chapter on hummingbirds and the amazing tale of Maya and Zuni.  And I found interesting the chapter on pigeons, providing a look into the world of racing these much-maligned birds.

I did find myself a little rankled reading the chapter on falconry, as the handlers describe being attacked by the birds under their care.  It made me rethink my feelings about the hobby of falconry as an intrusion into a hawk's nature for the singular purpose of personal satisfaction and entertainment. 

Upon completion of Birdology, I felt strangely empty, which was hard to imagine having just finished a book about the natural history of a variety of birds.  Perhaps the lengthy title was a hint - Birdology just tried too hard to be all things to bird lovers, to cover too much ground over too broad a spectrum. 

The purpose of the book was clearly stated in the Introduction: "to restore both our awe and our connection to these winged aliens who live among us."  I'm always looking for books and stories that do exactly that, but at least for me, Birdology missed the mark.  Though occasionally entertaining and informative, on its whole Birdology failed in its mission to further connect me with the birds and was a disappointing read.  Perhaps the title got my hopes up, but in the end, Birdology did little to further stoke my passion for the birds.

DRAWING: Comment on this post for your chance to win my review copy of Birdology.  Entries close January 31.  Winner will be notified by email.
WINNER:  Thanks everyone for commenting.  Congratulations and the book go to Amy.

BIRDOLOGY
by Sy Montgomery
Published by Free Press April 2010
ISBN 978-1-4165-6984-8
$25.00

In accordance with Federal Trade Commission 16 CFR Part 255, it is disclosed that the copy of the book read in order to produce this review was provided gratis to the reviewer by the publisher.

Comments

[The Zen Birdfeeder]

Your names were written on nine little slips of paper and Amy's name was drawn. Congrats Amy and thanks everyone for visiting The Zen Birdfeeder.
Another book review will be coming up in early February.

[Susan]

The cover of the book caught my eye and I am sure many readers will agree that the book cover is quite appealing. I look forward to reading as I know I will enjoy the contents. I find that bird watching to be a comfort and a stimulate for my senses...birds make me feel good.

Thanks for sharing and I will watch for our book.

[Susan Fassett]

My husband once found a racing pigeon that became attached to him. We tried to find someone to care for this bird and were directed to a local man who raises and races pigeons. We learned so much about them from him that also changed our feelings toward pigeons. And he still has the pigeon last time I saw him.

[Carla Lemar]

Any book with chickens on the front I pick up, since I so want to have chickens. Last year I started reading more bird books;Kingbird Highway, The Big Day etc I've enjoyed it.

[Carol Wong]

I don't care a twit about the lack of focus when it comes to birds. I love all books that are about birds or have birds in them so please enter me for this book.

Thank you,
Carol Wong

[Nick]

Hmm... It does sound like the book is trying to be too many things at once. Nevertheless, it sounds like something I might want to check out sometime. Thanks for the review!

[Fieldguidetohummingbirds.wordpress.com]

As a sufferer of Attention Deficit Ooooh Shiny!, I empathize with Montgomery's lack of focus. Birds offer so many tempting tangents that it's hard to know where to stop. Reading other reviews, I imagined Birdology being like a more focused version of one of John McPhee's collections: eclectic, but with an underlying unity. Still, it sounds like a good choice for someone with a casual interest in birds, who wouldn't be likely to read a whole book dedicated to pigeons, parrots, falconry, chickens, etc.

[Margaret]

Yes, a cassowary is hard to visualize, although they are less than half the height of the extinct moa!

[Amy]

Well, the globetrotting aspect certainly appeals to me. Sounds like I would learn something from reading this book. Thanks for offering it as a giveaway.

[Jessica]

Sounds interesting. I don't care for falconry--nor keeping birds as pets for that matter (with the exception of chickens!). Some don't seem to understand the difference between domesticated animals and wild.