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anitaashland's review
5.0
I try to always have a bird book in the stack of books I'm reading at any given time because there is so much to learn about the endless variety of birds. Birdology was a delight to read and provided many new interesting bird facts that combine scientific details with real life stories and observations. The author's passion for birds is infectious and she successfully conveys how otherworldly birds are.
It was a pleasure to be introduced to the thoroughly fascinating Cassowary bird in Australia, which is an elusive 6 foot tall, 150 pound bird. The chapter provides all the proof one needs that birds are dinosaurs.
The glimpse into falconry was eye-opening. Falconry is not like training a dog or having a pet: "You must never think in terms of rewards and punishments... They don't serve us. We serve them...You train a hawk to accept you as her servant."
The author also takes us into the world of pigeon racing. Pigeons can fly more than 500 miles in one day at speeds more than 60 mph - fueled only by an ounce of seed the night before and without stopping for a sip of water.
There are also chapters on chickens, hummingbirds, parrots, and the intelligence of crows. There are references to many other types of birds throughout the book. Overall the book expanded by knowledge of birds and I recommend it to anyone who loves birds.
It was a pleasure to be introduced to the thoroughly fascinating Cassowary bird in Australia, which is an elusive 6 foot tall, 150 pound bird. The chapter provides all the proof one needs that birds are dinosaurs.
The glimpse into falconry was eye-opening. Falconry is not like training a dog or having a pet: "You must never think in terms of rewards and punishments... They don't serve us. We serve them...You train a hawk to accept you as her servant."
The author also takes us into the world of pigeon racing. Pigeons can fly more than 500 miles in one day at speeds more than 60 mph - fueled only by an ounce of seed the night before and without stopping for a sip of water.
There are also chapters on chickens, hummingbirds, parrots, and the intelligence of crows. There are references to many other types of birds throughout the book. Overall the book expanded by knowledge of birds and I recommend it to anyone who loves birds.
carolpk's review
4.0
I’ve been taking my time reading Birdology by Sy Montgomery, savoring the stories, peck by peck or is that page by page.
Everyone that I know that has read this before me, bird lovers all, seem to pick their favorite chapter and bird to exclaim about. Some enjoyed reading about feeding baby hummingbirds (very interesting and hard work), some liked learning more about the birds of prey, what it means to study falconry and others couldn’t believe the lineage and sheer size of The Cassowary. The Adventures with a Pack of Hens is a real hoot!
For me, it was the crows all the way. My dad loved crows and he often spent hours and hours just watching them; at least he did when he retired and actually had time to, well, “sit and watch the crows”. He always said they were smart and loved to imitate their call, “Caw, Caw, Caw”. I believe he was able to communicate with those that frequented his yard. He knew they held meetings and were that they were very family focused.
Montgomery really gives us a picture of this bird that is loved by some and hated by others. One guy goes so far as to say, “They’re like rats with feathers!” He’s not alone in this opinion. Crows are one of the bird groups that are in no danger of extinction. A roost can contain over 200,000 birds. One, on the Delaware River had 500,000. One at Ft Cobb, Oklahoma, had more than 2 million. That’s more than even Alfred Hitchcock could imagine. But crows are fascinating and if you take the time to read this book you’ll see why.
Montgomery is called “Part Indiana Jones and part Emily Dickinson.” by The Boston Globe. I intend to read more of her books.
Everyone that I know that has read this before me, bird lovers all, seem to pick their favorite chapter and bird to exclaim about. Some enjoyed reading about feeding baby hummingbirds (very interesting and hard work), some liked learning more about the birds of prey, what it means to study falconry and others couldn’t believe the lineage and sheer size of The Cassowary. The Adventures with a Pack of Hens is a real hoot!
For me, it was the crows all the way. My dad loved crows and he often spent hours and hours just watching them; at least he did when he retired and actually had time to, well, “sit and watch the crows”. He always said they were smart and loved to imitate their call, “Caw, Caw, Caw”. I believe he was able to communicate with those that frequented his yard. He knew they held meetings and were that they were very family focused.
Montgomery really gives us a picture of this bird that is loved by some and hated by others. One guy goes so far as to say, “They’re like rats with feathers!” He’s not alone in this opinion. Crows are one of the bird groups that are in no danger of extinction. A roost can contain over 200,000 birds. One, on the Delaware River had 500,000. One at Ft Cobb, Oklahoma, had more than 2 million. That’s more than even Alfred Hitchcock could imagine. But crows are fascinating and if you take the time to read this book you’ll see why.
Montgomery is called “Part Indiana Jones and part Emily Dickinson.” by The Boston Globe. I intend to read more of her books.
kimbersul's review
4.0
Loved it. Intersting read, set in sections with all different type of birds. I now have a new favorite bird that I knew nothing about previously. And a new found respect for pigeons.
judyward's review
4.0
A very interesting read about the wide variety of birds in the world and how they interact with each other and their environments. I loved the chapter on the author's flock of chickens who go and visit the neighbors (without crossing the road) and excitedly greet the author every time they see her. The description of the orphan baby hummingbirds was also a delight. I have to admit that I learned more about birds than I thought I would and enjoyed every minute of it.
spiderfelt's review
5.0
when I told my husband how much I was enjoying this book, he responded 'i didn't know you were interested in birds'. I'm not, really, but I will read anything written well by an interesting author. I loved it so much, I can't wait to pass it on to my bird-loving friends and equally to those repulsed by birds.
ehmannky's review
informative
lighthearted
slow-paced
3.0
I think that, more than any other Montgomery book I've read, this book anthropomorphizes animals the most. And I think that she's trying really hard not to, but it just comes out sometimes (especially when she's talking about her chickens--it's better when she's talking about raptors). This is an older book, so if you read it just go in knowing that some of the factual information is outdated (for example, we now know a lot of birds have excellent senses of smell) and she, for some reason, uses the r-slur in reference to developmental disability. Again, it's an older book so I'm not out to cancel her or anything, I just think there are things that people should know before they go into this book. Also, the hummingbird chapter is just basically her hummingbird book so if you've already read The Hummingbird's Gift you can essentially skip that chapter.