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raidingpages's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.0
rumbledethumps's review against another edition
2.0
I love most birding memoirs, but there is a subset that I cannot stand: the I've-discovered-birds-in-middle-age-and-need-to-tell-everyone-about-it memoir. They all take the same form: life has thrown them a curveball, they stumble on to birding, and birding teaches them lessons about life. They discover what every birder already knows (nature is miraculous), and try to convince the reader of this by using flowery prose in an attempt to convey this mundane profundity.
Birds Art Life falls into this subset of birding memoirs. I found myself annoyed or arguing with something on every page. From her being able to distinguish among the 3 swans usually found in North America on one of her first birding trips (not exceptionally difficult, but highly unlikely for a beginner), to the tired cliche of looking at caged birds and musing on the cages we put ourselves in ("The cage of habit. The cage of ego. The cage of ambition. The cage of materialism.")
Throw in the obligatory climate change warnings, mix in anecdotes from life that remind her of the birds she's seen, then add a dash of the oft-told story of the extinction of the passenger pigeon, and you've got the typical How I Discovered Birding in Middle Age memoir.
For a better birding memoir, I recommend Kingbird Highway by Kenn Kaufman, and for a better year-in-the-life of nature type book, I highly recommend A Sand County Almanac by Aldo Leopold.
Birds Art Life falls into this subset of birding memoirs. I found myself annoyed or arguing with something on every page. From her being able to distinguish among the 3 swans usually found in North America on one of her first birding trips (not exceptionally difficult, but highly unlikely for a beginner), to the tired cliche of looking at caged birds and musing on the cages we put ourselves in ("The cage of habit. The cage of ego. The cage of ambition. The cage of materialism.")
Throw in the obligatory climate change warnings, mix in anecdotes from life that remind her of the birds she's seen, then add a dash of the oft-told story of the extinction of the passenger pigeon, and you've got the typical How I Discovered Birding in Middle Age memoir.
For a better birding memoir, I recommend Kingbird Highway by Kenn Kaufman, and for a better year-in-the-life of nature type book, I highly recommend A Sand County Almanac by Aldo Leopold.
emmaaadub's review against another edition
2.0
2,5*
This wasn't really what I expected. I needed more of a journey, this just felt like a lot of single observations put together. Some of the messages were inspiring though, so I'll be looking out for birdsongs in the future :)
This wasn't really what I expected. I needed more of a journey, this just felt like a lot of single observations put together. Some of the messages were inspiring though, so I'll be looking out for birdsongs in the future :)
bookbirder's review against another edition
2.0
I found this book on a list of books about birds. Don’t be fooled: this is a story about an artist going through some sort of mid-life crisis or revolution, who happens to use her entry into the birding world as a central axis from which to share her metaphors and philosophical thoughts.
Even once I’d accepted the book for what it was, I found it difficult to engage with the words, and there were several points at which I considered putting the book down for good. It was too slow-moving people for my tastes, but the writing itself wasn’t necessarily bad.
My final word of caution would be to find a physical version of the book. There were a fair number of drawings and photographs, none of which were well formatted for an ebook.
Even once I’d accepted the book for what it was, I found it difficult to engage with the words, and there were several points at which I considered putting the book down for good. It was too slow-moving people for my tastes, but the writing itself wasn’t necessarily bad.
My final word of caution would be to find a physical version of the book. There were a fair number of drawings and photographs, none of which were well formatted for an ebook.
sophieblunt's review against another edition
5.0
I have never cared much for birds. I don’t wish them harm but have never really given them much thought. I’m not sure, then, what led me to pick up a book about a woman who follows a birdwatcher for a year. But I actually loved it. I still don’t give much of a hoot for birds, but I got lost in this mediation on birdwatching and how we need to get outdoors, slow down and sometimes look up to help us find a subtle yet restorative meaning to our everyday lives.