This charming book celebrates one of the most popular leisure activities worldwide with selections from the lively literature about birds, bird watchers, and bird behaviour that flourished between 1750 and 1910. The resulting collection is a browser's paradise. Famous and unknown writers alike - from John Muir, John James Audubon, and Wordsworth to the largely forgotten ornithologist Florence Merriam and the dedicated amateur Theodore Roosevelt - intermingle with quotations taken from professional studies, belles lettres, literature, correspondence, and diaries. The entries are by turn practical, lyrical, humorous, literary, and scientific as these birdwatchers share their infectious observations, which, while historically specific, are timeless in their evocation of what the passion for birds is all about. Sections address migration, nests, and flight as well as types of birds including raptors, sea birds, and hummingbirds. This is perfect armchair reading and an elegant gift for birdwatchers and natural history lovers alike.
