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jeanetterenee's review against another edition
4.0
Mark Obmascik's style here is playful and almost conversational. He really plays up the competition among the three contenders. I discovered, however, that I'd much rather read about birds than about bird chasers.
I'm generally content to observe the more common species of birds sharing the habitat close to my home. I can be thrilled by a robin feasting on fall berries, barn swallows building a nest in spring, hundreds of crows gathering in a huge pine for an evening confab, or a winter wren singing his heart out, putting on a concert just for me. I do enjoy the challenge and excitement of identifying a bird I've never seen before, but I've never kept a "life list" and never will.
To me, the concept of "competitive birding" is absurd. Birdwatching is not a sport. People who race around the country checking off species as quickly as possible are not watching birds. They are bird chasers. We may as well put them on a reality TV show and forget about the enjoyment of nature for its own sake, as a meditative pursuit.
All that said, I did enjoy the book. I learned a lot about how the national and international birding communities operate, and there's some fascinating information about birds and migration. Chapter 9 was particularly excellent in that regard. Obmascik also includes some history of famous birders---much more interesting than modern-day fanatics.
There were three competitors for Big Year 1998. Al Levantin and Greg Miller seemed like pretty decent guys. I found Sandy Komito so odious that I had a hard time reading about him and his exploits. He's one of those guys who goes out of his way to be obnoxious and offensive just to get attention and amuse himself. I might have been impressed by his bird knowledge if he had used it for anything other than to stroke his over-sized ego and outdo other hopefuls. He had already won the Big Year competition several years before. He could have stepped aside and let someone else have a chance. The author seemed to genuinely like Komito, though, while still doing a perfect job of showing what a complete jerk he was.
I'm generally content to observe the more common species of birds sharing the habitat close to my home. I can be thrilled by a robin feasting on fall berries, barn swallows building a nest in spring, hundreds of crows gathering in a huge pine for an evening confab, or a winter wren singing his heart out, putting on a concert just for me. I do enjoy the challenge and excitement of identifying a bird I've never seen before, but I've never kept a "life list" and never will.
To me, the concept of "competitive birding" is absurd. Birdwatching is not a sport. People who race around the country checking off species as quickly as possible are not watching birds. They are bird chasers. We may as well put them on a reality TV show and forget about the enjoyment of nature for its own sake, as a meditative pursuit.
All that said, I did enjoy the book. I learned a lot about how the national and international birding communities operate, and there's some fascinating information about birds and migration. Chapter 9 was particularly excellent in that regard. Obmascik also includes some history of famous birders---much more interesting than modern-day fanatics.
There were three competitors for Big Year 1998. Al Levantin and Greg Miller seemed like pretty decent guys. I found Sandy Komito so odious that I had a hard time reading about him and his exploits. He's one of those guys who goes out of his way to be obnoxious and offensive just to get attention and amuse himself. I might have been impressed by his bird knowledge if he had used it for anything other than to stroke his over-sized ego and outdo other hopefuls. He had already won the Big Year competition several years before. He could have stepped aside and let someone else have a chance. The author seemed to genuinely like Komito, though, while still doing a perfect job of showing what a complete jerk he was.
miss_tricia's review against another edition
3.0
How I came to read The Big Year is a bit of a round about story. Hubby found it on the give-a-book-take-a-book shelf at the train station the day he fell asleep on the way home and overshot his stop. He thought it was boring, but left it out on the counter, where my Mom found it. As she's the fastest reader ever, she plowed through it in a couple of hours, and recommended it as "not boring if you can read quickly, but probably boring if you're a slow reader." I'm faster than Hubby, but not as fast as Mom, so I didn't know. Then I spotted the movie (I didn't know there was a movie!) on the watch-a-movie-about-animals display at the library. We did, and I enjoyed it, so I started the book.
It's odd for me to watch the movie before reading the book, but I probably enjoyed the book a little more because of the movie. The movie takes some real liberties (most notably editing the age and life circumstance of one main character), and I had a good time comparing the two. I learned a lot about birding and some about birds. I enjoyed getting to know the sport and the men profiled. I laughed occasionally. It was worth it.
It's odd for me to watch the movie before reading the book, but I probably enjoyed the book a little more because of the movie. The movie takes some real liberties (most notably editing the age and life circumstance of one main character), and I had a good time comparing the two. I learned a lot about birding and some about birds. I enjoyed getting to know the sport and the men profiled. I laughed occasionally. It was worth it.
ashurq's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this book! My husband and I watched the movie a few years ago (starring Jack Black, Owen Wilson, and Steve Martin--link to trailer below) and then he read the book it was based off of and highly recommended it. I finally got around to reading it this month and just fell completely in love with the idea of birding. I know literally nothing about birds but this book made me want to do a big year. Just reading about the preparation leading up to the three big years was really exciting for me! And then the author does a really good job of keeping the suspense up throughout the big year as well. This book was just great. Even if you know nothing about birds, like me, I'd highly recommend this book. 5/5
ldv's review against another edition
3.0
An entertaining read about the true story of three die-hard birders on their Big Year. The non-fiction book reads like fiction, for the most part. While it is not Pulitzer prize writing, it is humourous and engaging, easy to get into and see through to the conclusion. A great insight on the world of birders and the competitive side of non-athletes.
librarydino's review against another edition
4.0
Super fun read. I’m interested in seeing the movie now, but I’m not sure how that’s going to play out...
bract4813mypacksnet's review against another edition
3.0
Somehow reading about a big year wasn't as exciting as actually doing on.
michaelnlibrarian's review against another edition
3.0
I saw something about the new movie and that it was from a book, so decided to read this. Even the trailer for the book makes it clear that the story is about the competitive aspect of the three main characters attempting to see as many bird species in N America as possible in one year but the competitive aspect is not much in evidence for most of the first half of the book. I almost stopped reading.
Eventually it picks up (or comes together as a story) and the second half was pretty good. For someone who knows zero about birding, I guess I learned a little. There may be some lesson in the description of the obsessive way these guys pursued this "hobby" but I don't know what it is.
The movie has gotten weak reviews for being bland. The book is likely blander still but the writing is fine and overall a readable book. I finished it, anyway.
Eventually it picks up (or comes together as a story) and the second half was pretty good. For someone who knows zero about birding, I guess I learned a little. There may be some lesson in the description of the obsessive way these guys pursued this "hobby" but I don't know what it is.
The movie has gotten weak reviews for being bland. The book is likely blander still but the writing is fine and overall a readable book. I finished it, anyway.
harryr's review against another edition
3.0
This was fun. There's a certain prose style associated with American long-form narrative journalism that I find slightly wearing, but it wasn't enough to spoil my enjoyment of the book.
jenne's review against another edition
3.0
Someone on FICTION-L said this was the best book OF ANY KIND they had read ALL YEAR. So I read it, and it was pretty interesting but I don't think I would go quite that far.
What it is, is the story of 3 guys in 1998 competing to see who can spot the most species of birds in North America in one year. Which is cool, if you're into that.
Actually, I mentioned to my cousin (who is a fanatical birder) that I had read this and he said that in fact he came in 4th that year. Who knew.
What it is, is the story of 3 guys in 1998 competing to see who can spot the most species of birds in North America in one year. Which is cool, if you're into that.
Actually, I mentioned to my cousin (who is a fanatical birder) that I had read this and he said that in fact he came in 4th that year. Who knew.
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