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meganac's review
5.0
*I was given an eARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!*
An insightful memoir/doc on the species of owl common (and a few uncommon) in the UK. There's some overlap with our North American birds, so it's worth the read even if you aren't local to the author. I know some disliked the memoir aspect, but I enjoyed it even if I disagreed with some of Darlington's sentiments. I have a different perspective on conservation and wild animals from my work with raptor rehabilitation and falconry. I still appreciated her passion!
I learned a few things I didn't know. I'd recommend this if you love owls, birds, or nature in general.
An insightful memoir/doc on the species of owl common (and a few uncommon) in the UK. There's some overlap with our North American birds, so it's worth the read even if you aren't local to the author. I know some disliked the memoir aspect, but I enjoyed it even if I disagreed with some of Darlington's sentiments. I have a different perspective on conservation and wild animals from my work with raptor rehabilitation and falconry. I still appreciated her passion!
I learned a few things I didn't know. I'd recommend this if you love owls, birds, or nature in general.
owlyenthusiast's review
informative
inspiring
relaxing
slow-paced
3.0
As a lover of owls, I gravitated towards this book and bought it almost on a whim. The owl knowledge and poetic language of the novel didn't disappoint. Darlington has a wonderful voice when it comes to describing the natural world around her, and her excitement encountering owls in the wild is infectious. However, I do think that Darlington set out to do something quite challenging in making this a personal memoir as well as a scientific one. Individually, both the ornithological explorations and the autobiographical bits surrounding her life at home were interesting, but I don't think they were connected well. This gave the feeling of smash-cutting from Darlington discussing her latest species of owl to discussing the illness of her child. It was often jarring, and I felt like I couldn't fully invest in several parts because of this.
Additionally, I enjoyed her observations surrounding conservation and the ways that humans have commodified certain species in a way that strips them of their wildness in our minds, but I think there were a few places where her musings were repetitive.
Additionally, I enjoyed her observations surrounding conservation and the ways that humans have commodified certain species in a way that strips them of their wildness in our minds, but I think there were a few places where her musings were repetitive.
piperclover's review against another edition
I was really excited about this and did learn some cool bits but its more a memoir with owl stuff in it. I'm very uncomfortable by the explicit discussion of her son's illness and how it has impacted him. I wasn't aware that it was going to be so heavily focused on in the book and it calls up concerns about if he gave consent for his very traumatic illness to be used in a book for his mother's profit.
melanie_reads's review
adventurous
informative
inspiring
reflective
4.25
This book definitely gave me pause about our relationship with animals. The idea to stop "cutifying" wild animals is something worth further thought.
northerly_heart_reads's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
3.75