Publishers Weekly
★ 06/20/2022
Ornithologist Birkhead (Bird Sense: What It’s Like to Be a Bird) delivers a master class in this fascinating look at humans’ evolving relationship with birds, tracking over the course of 12 millennia as birds went from being the objects of art and veneration to sources of food and sport, and the current subject of study and conservation. In ancient Egypt, for example, four million Sacred Ibises were mummified, then found in the early 1800s: “bird mummies served four different purposes: preserving the birds as food, as pets for deceased humans, as gods to be revered and as votive offerings.” Other sections delve into the medieval obsession with falconry, the study of birds’ biology during a natural history boom in the Victorian era, and contemporary bird-dependent societies on the Faroe Islands. Portraits of key players in ornithology enrich the narrative, among them Edmund Selous, who near the end of the 19th century led the shift from killing birds for study to bird-watching as a serious intellectual pursuit, an activity that garnered empathy for the creatures. Birkhead clearly knows his terrain, and his writing is vivid and occasionally funny: “There’s also the ammonia-rich aroma of sea-bird shit (which I love, by the way).” This is a must-read for nature lovers. (Aug.)
From the Publisher
"Birkhead shows how, across history, [birds] have continually captured our imaginations."—-Matthew Broaddus, Publishers Weekly
"An enjoyable book."—-Margaret Henderson, Library Journal
"Tim Birkhead’s book succeeds at being both an excellent history book and an informative nature guide."—-Matthew Benzing, Foreword Reviews
"[A] captivating, informative, novel, and thought-provoking historical treatment of one of the oldest and strongest bonds connecting humankind with the natural world."—-John W. Fitzpatrick, Quarterly Review of Biology
Library Journal
06/01/2022
Award-winning ornithologist Birkhead (The Most Perfect Thing: Inside [and Outside] a Bird's Egg) has written nearly a dozen books on birds. This title examines how humans have interacted with birds throughout history through the lens of artwork. Birkhead takes an engaging look at the art of birds from Paleolithic times to the present, looking at the ways humans have viewed birds as gods, food, commodities, adornment, inspiration for flight, and finally, as creatures to be protected (possibly encouraged by the popularity of bird-watching). Along the way, Birkhead introduces readers to an array of explorers, archeologists, conservationists, natural historians, and artists who have been inspired by birds and bird art. He also includes anecdotes from his own career in ornithology. VERDICT Includes a list of birds mentioned, extensive notes and bibliography, and an excellent index. An enjoyable book for those interested in birds or art.—Margaret Henderson
Kirkus Reviews
★ 2022-05-12
A study of birds as inspiration, enlightenment, and food.
Melding science, natural history, memoir, and travelogue, ornithologist Birkhead offers a commodious history of humans’ connection to birds, from prehistoric times to the current burgeoning interest in bird-watching. He begins in southern Spain, where depictions of more than 200 birds were discovered in Neolithic caves. This “birthplace of bird study” raises the question of the artists’ motivation: Do the images represent totemism, suggesting that birds were worshipped? Did the artists pay homage to birds prized for food? Did the images serve as a kind of field guide? In ancient Egypt, mummified birds were found in catacombs, preserved as food, pets for the deceased, or votive offerings. Birkhead examines early interest in investigating birds (by Aristotle and Pliny the Elder, for example); falconry as pastime, an “expensive, time-consuming” indulgence of aristocrats; and the medieval veneration of birds as “hovering midway between heaven and earth, half angels, half animals,” which can be deduced from the appearance of birds in religious paintings. As prey—sometimes for food, sometimes for sport—bird populations often have been decimated. Tudor England fostered an “unthinking persecution of wildlife” that included birds seen as “vermin.” In the late 1950s, Mao Zedong set off mass killings of sparrows, blamed for stealing grain. The 17th century saw a marked interest in scientific investigation, resulting in a proliferation of description, collection, and illustration of birds. Victorians paradoxically cherished birds, enjoying a vogue for caged songbirds but also for amassing specimens of birds, skins, and eggs. From acorn woodpeckers to zebra finches, Birkhead examines bird habitat, behavior, cultural meaning, and physiology in species around the world. He creates engaging portraits of the often eccentric individuals involved in bird investigations and reports on some exotic uses of birds for food—flamingos’ fatty tongues, for example, roast peacock, and fattened herons. This beautifully produced volume is replete with drawings, photographs, maps, and vivid color plates.
A fascinating, authoritative avian history.
