Reviews

⭐⭐ This wasn't what I was expecting but it was well written. I thought it would be an interesting nonfiction book about hawks but instead it is a memoir of a woman dealing with the death of her father, writing a book report, learning falconry, and identifying with a hawk held in captivity. The first portion and throughout the rest of the book, MacDonald dissects a book on Goshawks by T.H. White and provides a psychoanalysis of the author and the book's contents. This made the book feel like a rehashed academic paper set into the context of MacDonald's memoir. This was not my jam. I think one of the biggest issues I had with the book was that she kept on comparing her own behavior (after the death of her father experiencing depression and antisocial behavior) to the hawk and never once mentioned that the hawk is being held in captivity and is not in its natural setting. Maybe that's the point she was trying to make? If so, it did not come off like that. I love the cover but this one will not be staying on my forever shelf.

abigailshupe's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective relaxing sad medium-paced

5.0

laurenv_reads's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

3.0

celtic67's review against another edition

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3.0

Very good book. several stories running concurrently. Though may be an acquired taste .

jaymike11's review against another edition

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emotional reflective slow-paced

4.0

You do not have to be a bird person to enjoy this, though you may become a bird enthusiast after finishing the book. More a journey through grief than anything, this book has at least one profound insight on human nature and grief in every chapter. This is worth it. Don't worry about the fact that the book has been out for 10 years now, it still does everything it's supposed to.

rhywia's review against another edition

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3.75

This book has good prose, but not much plot. I enjoy the elements about hawks and falconry, and the nature imagery, but at the end of the day, its about the author dealing with grief by escapism. And a second retelling of The Goshawk by White through the pages of this book. Its my first reread of this book, having read it years ago after picking it up in a random bookstore for the hawk on the cover.

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