Birds by the Shore: Observing the Natural Life of the Atlantic Coast

by Jennifer Ackerman Narrated by Jennifer Ackerman

Overview

From the bestselling author of The Genius of Birds, the revised and reissued edition of her beloved book of essays describing her forays along the Delaware shore

For three years, Jennifer Ackerman lived in the small coastal town of Lewes, Delaware, in the sort of blue-water, white-sand landscape that draws summer crowds up and down the eastern seaboard. Birds by the Shore is a book about discovering the natural life at the ocean's edge: the habits of shorebirds and seabirds, the movement of sand and water, the wealth of creatures that survive amid storm and surf. Against this landscape's rhythms, Ackerman revisits her own history--her mother's death, her father's illness and her hopes to have children of her own.

This portrait of life at the ocean's edge will be relished by anyone who has walked a beach at sunset, or watched a hawk hover over a winter marsh, and felt part of the natural world. With a quiet passion and friendly, generous intelligence, it explores the way that landscape shapes our thoughts and perceptions and shows that home ground is often where we feel the deepest response to the planet.

Editorial Reviews

JULY 2019 - AudioFile

Jennifer Ackerman revisits her memories of living on the coast of Delaware in this audiobook reissue and update of a 1995 collection of essays. Her voice carries a charming sense of wistfulness and wonder as she explores the seashore. It is about so much more than birds. Ackerman observes the crabs, worms, snakes, marshes, trees, tides, storms, and weather as well as the birds that are dependent on life at the shore. Her personal experiences are intertwined with the landscape as she remembers her mother’s death from cancer, her father’s illness, and her first pregnancy. Ackerman’s grace and love for the natural world filter through into her performance, and she instills a sense of place in the listener, although it comes with a tinge of fear for the environment. A.B. © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine

From the Publisher

Arresting and provocative… A joy to read”—The Washington Post

“Ackerman’s glimpses of the Delaware shore are full of the kind of fascinating detail that makes good nature writing as engaging as any fiction.”—Smithsonian Magazine

“Like walking along an ocean beach with a knowledgeable, articulate friend, reading this personalized natural history is a restorative experience.”—Publisher’s Weekly, Starred Review

“A lyrical meditation on the scientific and philosophical meaning to be found in one short stretch of Delaware coastline… Poetic, precise, intelligent, thoughtful. A lovely book.”—Kirkus

“Serene and loving, Ackerman’s deeply personal take on the world around her constitutes nature writing at its best.”—The Philadelphia Inquirer

“A celebration of finding a home, wherever that may be.”—People

JULY 2019 - AudioFile

Jennifer Ackerman revisits her memories of living on the coast of Delaware in this audiobook reissue and update of a 1995 collection of essays. Her voice carries a charming sense of wistfulness and wonder as she explores the seashore. It is about so much more than birds. Ackerman observes the crabs, worms, snakes, marshes, trees, tides, storms, and weather as well as the birds that are dependent on life at the shore. Her personal experiences are intertwined with the landscape as she remembers her mother’s death from cancer, her father’s illness, and her first pregnancy. Ackerman’s grace and love for the natural world filter through into her performance, and she instills a sense of place in the listener, although it comes with a tinge of fear for the environment. A.B. © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine

Product Details

BN ID:	2940171881511
Publisher:	Penguin Random House
Publication date:	05/07/2019
Edition description:	Unabridged

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