Product Description
"In novel form, the book is much more than the simple account of the extinction of a species of bird. It's a touching and moving narrative of the bewildered attempts of the bird to lead a normal life and yet, at the same time, a shocking and revolting exposé of man's shortsightedness and lack of understanding of even elementary conservation practices. It's a forewarning of doom for many other species unless concrete and immediate action is taken to preserve them; in short, this is one of the best written, most touching books ever produced."—Baton Rouge Sunday Advocate ... Read more

Customer Reviews (9)

Heartbreaking and heartwarming......
I bought this book to satisfy my curiosity to learn just how man made this wonderful creature extinct.Believe me in reading this book I found out.There were beautiful and heartwarming parts to this book and there was also many sad, cruel, heartless parts.Man was heartless and greedy.The inhumane ways this bird was slaughtered are unbelievable.When I got to the last chapter the tears rolled down my face.Also, if you want to know what a "stool pigeon" is you'll find it out in this book.Believe me, it will leave you saddened for a very long time.I highly recommend this book.

Linda Diglio

This book will touch your soul - if you have one.
This book was compelling to read and impossible to forget.The way that the author writes the story from the bird's perspective gives the reader an unforgettable vision into one of North America's greatest environmental tragedies.

A Very Touching And Unnerving Story
After reading Allan Eckert's books on the frontier, I was pleased to find he also wrote a book about the passenger pigeon, a subject that has always fascinated me as a history teacher and an environmentalist. I read The Silent Sky and was deeply moved. So moved in fact that I was almost ashamed to be human. The greed and outright murderous lust thousands of Americans had for such an easy prey as the passenger pigeon was shameful and hard to comprehend. Unfortunately, the passenger pigeons were so timid, easy to hunt and numerous that they were incredibly easy pickings for the pioneers of the 19th century who unbelievably decimated a species that at one time numbered in the tens of billions. Eckert is an awesome writer and really hits you in the gut with such a touching story that you feel fascination, anger, guilt (for being human) and sorrow at the same time. In what I have learned from this incredible book, it really is a silent sky out there today compared to just over a century ago. Anyone with an interest in American History and the environment just has to read this book. Eckert, as a writer and researcher is truly gifted.

this book brought tears to my eyes.........
What can i say about this book, it was beyond captivating it was the best story i have ever read. Anyone who cares about nature or wildlife or both need to read this book. The way Eckert puts the plight of the passenger pigeon into words is wonderfull. He makes you believe you are one of the now extinct birds flying among one billion soaring a thousand feet in the air looking for your next meal, feeling your strong wings glide through the air and most of all feel the pain of being alone. In an extremely short period of time man wiped the passenger pigeon off the face of the earth. It gave me a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach to realize that man is capable of destroying such a beautiful bird....hundreds of millions of them...untill they were gone forever. GET THIS BOOK EVEN IF YOU DONT LIKE STORIES ABOUT NATURE..IT WILL TOUCH YOUR SOUL

this book brought tears to my eyes.........
What can i say about this book, it was beyond captivating it was the best story i have ever read. Anyone who cares about nature or wildlife or both need to read this book. The way Eckert puts the plight of the passenger pigeon into words is wonderfull. He makes you believe you are one of the now extinct birds flying among one billion soaring a thousand feet in the air looking for your next meal, feeling your strong wings glide through the air and most of all feel the pain of being alone. In an extremely short period of time man wiped the passenger pigeon off the face of the earth. It gave me a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach to realize that man is capable of destroying such a beautiful bird....hundreds of millions of them...untill they were gone forever. GET THIS BOOK EVEN IF YOU DONT LIKE STORIES ABOUT NATURE..IT WILL TOUCH YOUR SOUL ... Read more

Product Description
Describes what is known of the history and habits of the North American bird that once numbered in the millions before becoming extinct in the early twentieth century. ... Read more

Product Description
When the clubhouse kids take in a flock of homing pigeons, their imaginations soar. But reality sets in all too soon and cleaning up after messy birds becomes old really fast. The search is on for a good home for their feathered friends and it leads to the kind of hilarity readers have come to expect from this on-target series. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Kids love these
Both my 2 and 4 year olds will sit through these books in the evening and keep going back to them as their bedtime picks.The 2 year old loves to learn the character names and laughs at their expressions and is relaxed for bed by the end.It's the only story book he'll sit and listen through end to end.

The Mighty Piegeon Club
Wonderful children's book with great stories that children of all ages will enjoy!! We have purchased the whole series for our daughters.

Another terrific book.
Daniel San Souci has authored another wonderful book.My 3 and 7 year old children both adore his work.The story is engaging and his illustrations are vibrant and captivating.We had ordered this book long ago and it was well worth the wait.His books always remind me of the magical "adventures" I had in my youth and they give my children inspiration to create their own. ... Read more

Product Description

In a town in Italy during World War II the people have surrendered without firing a shot. But American warplanes are due to arrive, and the radio's broken, so no one can tell them to call off the attack! G. I. Joe, a carrier pigeon, is the only one who can take the message to the Americans. Will he make it in time and save the town? ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Pigeon Hero
What a great little story. Wish I had more kids to share it with. ... Read more

Product Description
The third Anna Pigeon mystery is a charm.

Lately, visitors to Mesa Verde have been bringing home more than photos--they're also carrying a strange, deadly disease. And once it strikes, park ranger Anna Pigeon must find the very human source of the evil wind. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (33)

Applies to the audiobook so unfortunately abridged.
Sorry to those purists who will say that it's unfair of me to give the book a bad review because of the audio edition, but that's the edition I'm reviewing, that's the audience that would need this information and this is an accurate review of the edition I bought.

I will admit at the beginning that I don't much care for abridgments. Even with that bias, usually it means that secondary stories and details are omitted. This is so badly done that if I bought it on tape I'd think I'd lost a tape. You switch between points of the story abruptly and with no attempt to summarize what's happened. I couldn't follow the mystery. The only reason to get this is to follow Pigeon's developing character. For that, and a couple of frustrating hours attempting to follow the plot the cost is really high.

Before I bought this I read the AudioFile review, always a good idea when purchasing an audio book. I can only imagine that the reviewer was paid off. "Joanna Gleason narrates the excellent abridgment with clarity and drama." I enjoyed Gleason's narration, but excellent abridgment? When you take an author who's books average 10 hours and compact it into less than three hours you have to chose: will I describe the park or include the details of the plot. Someone chose to describe the park.

The Best
I have read every Nevada Barr's "Anna Pigeon" series. I love the character and all the trouble she can get herself into. Can't wait for the next book.

Anna Pigeon does it again
I read the first Anna Pigeon mystery "Track of the Cat" when I joined a Mystery Book Club.I dropped out of the club because I'm hooked on Nevada Barr's writing and the evolution of her character Anna Pigeon.Each book is intricately woven and I read long past midnight until I've finished.When I've finished the series, I might go back to the book club.;-)

Was there a story here?
Why did I bother when I hated the last Nevada Barr book?For the Mesa Verde setting.Long story short: Anna Pigeon is a lush, she left an NPS post she liked for what seems a contrived reasons, lives in a dorm with a bunch of self-centered girls (using the term on purpose).Then she solves the "mystery" and gets housing of her choice.Of course being Anna, she'll leave for another National Park right away.
The story made no sense; the writing was disjointed; the characters either unsympathetic or enigmatic to a fault.What Nevada Barr doesn't know about Navajo culture would fill a few encyclopedias.For a great series set in this region, read Tony Hillerman.

Anna Pigeon in Mesa Verde National Park!
Ill Wind is my third Anna Pigeon novel.Author Nevada Barr (I still wonder if this is her real name) has Ranger Pigeon living with the noisy seasonals, drinking hard, making friends, and... solving a murder.

Pigeon continues her string of "close misses" in her life and in her caseload.

A well-liked temporary ranger is found dead in an Anasazi structure.Is it a natural death, or murder staged to look natural?Pigeon, along with FBI colleague Fred Stanton, analyze every clue to unravel this mystery.Are the Anasazi ruins haunted?Are environmentalists resorting to murder to keep development from occurring?

Anna Pigeon finds out.

No murder in the first chapter here.This book unfolds slowly, with 100 pages under your belt before the foul deed is uncovered.Anna's drinking problem is in full view.She is a very imperfect person.

I have to admit that I thought I had uncovered the mystery fairly early."Oh, brother," I thought."That is so obvious."

It wasn't.Theory number two fell by the wayside as well.

Nevada Barr's mysteries are as good as those written by Dick Francis.And if you have an interest in the layout and management of our national parks, these mysteries are brain candy.Enjoy. ... Read more

Product Description
Chester Cricket--the famous cricket in Times Square--is homesick. When his friend Mario takes him to a sky show at the Planetarium, Chester realizes how much he misses seeing real stars at night.

Happily, he finds his way out of the subway into Times Square, where he meets a new friend, Lulu Pigeon. Lulu takes him on a trip beyond his wildest dreams. From Central Park to the top of the Empire State Building, from the Statue of Liberty and back to Times Square, Chester sees Manhattan in style--and even finds a little bit of country in the city!
... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Great Pics
The plot is a little thin compared to the richness of The Cricket in Times Square. But the pictures are great, and worth the price alone.

Chester Cricket's Pigeon Ride
Haven't read the book yet, bought it for me and my friend to read together, so can't rate it as yet, but I'm sure we'll enjoy it, as we've enjoyed all the books with Chester Cricket that we've read thus far.The delivery of the book was very timely.

So, I rated it 4 stars, just figuring it would be at least that good

review for chester cricket
Chester crickets pigeon ride is about a cricket named chester who lives in a sub way in New York with a boy who cares for him and two friends that is a cat and a mouse and they are maried(The cat and mouse are the ones who are maried.)Also when Chester started to feel home sick from his origonal home in the country he began to smell some oak trees.(Their are barly any trees in New York.)So now Chester is tring to find out were the tree sent was coming from,but when he found out were the oak trees were their was a big problem Chester had to cross a bissy,bissy road called Park ave.(The oak trees are on the other side of Park ave,the trees are in a park called Central Park.)Now to get to the park Chester took a cople leeps to the other side and he jumped to the bigest oak tree he layed his eyes on.Next when Chester the cricket landed onthe tree he started to nibble on leafs,but then a pigeon flew right next to him and said,what is a cricket like you doing here in the city?(He is in Time Square,New York.)All Chester did was get scared,but then the pigeon saw that he was scaring Chester so he wanted to make it up to him by showing him the sights in New York like the Statue of Liberty.Also now every time Chestergoes to Central Park he has a new friend who is a pigeon.

review for chester
Chester Cricket's Pigeon Ride is about a cricket named chester who lived in a sub way with a boy who cares for him and two friends who is a cat and a mouse and they are maried (the mouse and cat are maried.)Also chester lived in time square were their are rarly any trees,but when chester was feeling home sick from his origonal home in the country he started to smell oak trees.So now chester is tring to figure out were the sent of the oak trees are coming from.When chester found out were the trees were he started to them,but he had to cross a bissy,bissy road.(The oak trees are in a park called Central Park.)Now that chester hopped accros the road he took a giant leep onto the bigest tree he saw and began to nibble on some leafs.But then a pigeon flew right next to chester the cricket and said,What is a cricket doing all the way in the city?All Chester did was get scared and the pigeon said don't be scared I'll show you something that will cheer you up(This is when chester is told to go on the pigeons back.)Since chester is on the pigeons back the pigeon takes off into flight to show chester the Statue of Liberty,then after that the pigeon and the bird become friends and every time chester goes to Central Park chester always sees the pigeon

Hi
This is a preety good book.I know it can have better details.All of his other books are great! I just love them! ... Read more

Product Description
Set in Paris and attracting comparisons with Franz Kafka and Edgar Allan Poe, "The Pigeon" is Patrick Suskind's tense, disturbing follow-up to the bestselling Perfume. The novella tells the story of a day in the meticulously ordered life of bank security guard Jonathan Noel, who has been hiding from life since his wife left him for her Tunisian lover. When Jonathan opens his front door on a day he believes will be just like any other, he encounters not the desired empty hallway but an unwelcome, diabolical intruder... ... Read more

Customer Reviews (17)

Slow little book, but slow enough
The book caught me by surprise especially the finishing. I waited so long for an end of a suspense, only to find out there is actually not too much suspense after all. Very ordinary life of a very ordinary man, bit by bit--swimming through his daily stream of mundane concerns, his habits, and for some reasons, the whole story seems to me to be a black and white film. Give it a go. Words are well written.

It's hard to pigeon-hole this book
As other reviewers have pointed out it is less than a fully developed novel but a bit more than a short story.For one thing there is only a single character--Jonathan Noel.There is hardly any dialogue, and almost no interaction between Jonathan and any other human.Even the pigeon of the title makes only a cameo appearance.This is a tale of Jonathan's mind, spirit, emotions, and imagination.Jonathan, a committed recluse, goes through a kind of nervous breakdown one morning due to the presence of a pigeon sitting in the hall outside his meager room.Although we are drawn into Jonathan's world and his psychological distress is real for the reader, I find it odd and unbelievable that his nervous breakdown occurs and runs its course in the span of little more than twenty-four hours.

My sense is that The Pigeon is a novel about more than just a lonely man's mind.It is about the Holocaust and the damage that it did and is doing as it's effects ripple down the decades.The story begins, in a flashback, where Jonathan suddenly loses first his mother then his father to the Gestapo, and is then shipped off with his sister to strange relatives.His desolate life is a result of the psychological damage from these childhood events.Seeing the story as metaphor for the damage to Germany and Europe in general engendered by the Holocaust is not too far-fetched.Another deep and disturbing (and lengthy, truly a novel) about the personal damage done to Holocaust survivors is The Gravedigger's Daughter by Joyce Carol Oates.Damage to minds and hearts ripples from the center of such cataclysmic events and continues to ripple.This is the underlying text of The Pigeon.

I read the original German edition.I only checked the translation by John E. Woods sporadically, but it appears to be excellent.Süskind writes simple, clear, direct German.For those who enjoy reading German, or want to tune-up their German, I recommend reading Die Taube.

"How long did a pigeon live?"
After a rocky childhood as a result of World War II, Jonathan Noel had a good two decades of plain existence. He has been renting a room for that time and even though he does not even have a private bathroom he has decided to buy it. He works as doorman at a bank and day after day he follows the exact same schedule. But now that he is in his fifties, things are about to change.

One Friday morning in the month of August 1984, while he was on his way to the bathroom, Jonathan sees a pigeon outside the door of his room and goes into panic. He is afraid that pigeons will overtake the apartment and he does not dare kill it. The pigeon causes a revolution in the main character's life that is baffling, but the metaphor is hard to miss. Jonathan embarks in a series of crazy plans to evade the object that causes his strain, going as far as moving into a hotel, even though he cannot afford it.

Once more Suskind shows his ability for delving into the psyche of his characters and providing his readers with awesome insight. When we add to this author's writing ability to the mix, the result is more than satisfactory. This book in particular reminded me of the works of my favorite writer, Dostoevsky, since the Russian's main characters often enter a vicious circle in which they thinking something bad will happen and this becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy, which can only be prevented through great determination and effort. For those that have not read Suskind before, this is a good a place to start as any, and of course, make sure to not disregard his masterpiece "Perfume: The Story of a Murderer". Those that do know him already understand what I am talking about!

How to come unstuck!
From time to time you find yourself getting stuck in a comfortable rut, only to have your routine broken by the most trivial of events. Such events can be painful at first, but ultimately liberating. That's as simple as I can make it.

Great book!

Short and satisfying
The central achievement of Süskind's novella is the way it articulates the social anxiety of a man whose childhood fear of abandonment has played out as a lifetime of limited scope, controlling routines and self-imposed isolation.That might sound heavy but it isn't - mainly because Süskind wisely chooses the "free indirect" narrative style (mastered by Henry James).The story is told in the third person, but is nevertheless filtered through Jonathan Noel's gaze and consciousness so that external reality exists only as refracted in his mind.The result is that we see the world as he sees it, but without the unreliability that such a point of view entails.Süskind is thereby able to show us precisely what he wants us to see - both the horror and humour of Noel's experience - and to deliver a climax which remains somewhat objective and thereby inspires hope.Other reviewers seem to have found the ending cloying and unrealistic, but I think they're assuming more than Süskind suggests.Noel and his life are not utterly transformed at the end - he has an epiphany, he loses his fear, but it may or may not last. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Great for anyone interested in the hobby.
I just started the sport of pigeon racing and this book is wonderful for anyone looking to enjoy this sport.I really enjoyed the quick service of your zshops.Thank you!Very pleased in Minnesota. ... Read more

Product Description
Augusta Huiell Seaman (1879-1950) was an American author of children's literature. She graduated from Normal College in New York City in 1900 and went on to teach elementary school. Following her marriage in 1906, she devoted her time to writing children's books. While living in Island Beach, Augusta held various offices in the local government, including Borough clerk, Tax Collector, and Borough Registrar. Her works include: Jacqueline of the Carrier Pigeons (1910), The Boarded up House (1915), The Slipper Point Mystery (1919), The Dragon's Secret (1921), The Mystery at Number Six (1922), The Edge of Raven Pool (1924), The Charlemonte Crest (1930) and The Vanishing Octant Mystery (1949). ... Read more

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Product Description

Product Description
Master horror storyteller Joe R. Lansdale throws his scathing wit and wild, otherworldly creations into the mix as he brings Robert E. Howard's classic tale of dark revenge to the present . . . and into the unwilling lives of the Blassenville mansion heirs, twin sisters Claire and Janet. When Griswell fled the Blassenville estate those many years ago, he couldn't have imagined the grotesque horrors that would eclipse the ones he saw then - but they're here! With more than twenty books to his credit, Joe R. Lansdale is an acclaimed storyteller. He's been called "an immense talent" by Booklist; "a born storyteller" by Robert Bloch; and The New York Times Book Review declares he has "a folklorist's eye for telling detail and a front-porch raconteur's sense of pace." He's won a ton of awards, including five Bram Stoker horror awards, a British Fantasy Award, the American Mystery Award, the Horror Critics Award, the "Shot in the Dark" International Crime Writer's award, the Booklist Editor's Award, the Critic's Choice Award, and a New York Times Notable Book award. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Great original Story but Doesn't Translate well to Modern Times
Pigeons from Hell was written by Robert E. Howard and is arguably his best non-Conan tale and one of the finest American horror stories ever written.This tale of voodoo and zombies set within a dilapidated Southern Mansion is powerfully creepy.Dark Horse has taken the tale and updated it to modern times, courtesy of Horror Master Joe R. Lansdale.While the modernization does cause it to lose a bit of atmosphere, this is a great tale and it would take a superhuman effort to mess it up.The Art and colors by Nathan Fox and Dave Stewart are fantastic and well-suited to the material.The book also comes with commentary by Lansdale, a cover gallery and sketch art.

Another R.E.H. adaptation
If anyone is going to adapt Robert E. Howard's story, Pigeons From Hell, I'm glad it was Joe Lansdale. I've been a fan of his for years, and you can tell he put his heart and soul into this fairly faithful adaptation. I only gave it 3 stars for two reasons. The first is that the source material isn't all that compelling to me. The story is OK, but ventures through pretty familiar territory with several stereotypical characters thrown in the mix. Half way through the book I found myself wanting to hurry up and get to the end, and that's never a good sign. Secondly, Nathan Fox's art is perplexing. I really enjoyed his characters and some of the atmosphere (especially the decrepit house), but some panels left me wondering what the heck was going on (flip through it and you'll see what I mean). Some people like this style; I'm just not one of them.

Pigeons From Hell was readable, but ultimately a throwaway horror story I'm sure to soon forget. With that being said, I hope Lansdale gets some comic company to adapt some ORIGINAL material. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

The single most interesting book I have ever read!
Schorger's book is the definitive study of the wild pigeon of NorthAmerica; it covers all matters concerning the birds' natural history andextinction. People with an interest in North American history, ornithology,conservation and the preservation of natural resources will greatly broadentheir background and understanding through this detailed and anecdotalstudy. It contains 424 pages revealing a powerful aspect of North America'shistory unknown to current generations: skies filled with inconceivablenumbers of birds,-as many as two billion in a single migration. Schorgerpaints a vivid and poignant picture of a world we have lost, tragically,through our own greed and ignorance. If anyone would care to discuss thisbook or its subject matter further, I would be pleased to dialogue eitherby e-mail or letter. I have made the study of the Passenger Pigeon anintegral part of my life for the past thirty-three years. Sincerely,Holland E. Shaw

The single most interesting book I have ever read!
If anyone on Earth wants to discuss this extinct specie; I guaranttee thatmy e-mail address is the place to visit. I have had a unswervingfascination with ectopistis migratorius since 1965.Schorger's book is thebackbone of any serious study of "The Wild Pigeon" of NorthAmerica. ... Read more

Product Description
Contents Include: W.S. Pearson Arthur Wright O.I. Wood Fred Shaw Joe Cheetham Lester Torrey Some Variations Henry Martens Violette Renier Gurnay Two Present day Belgian Champions More Variations The System of Celibacy Semi-Widowhood True Widowhood The Design of the Loft The Summing Up ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

a good manual,good for beginers and has good information
this is a very good book for begineers and might help a middle levalpigeon fancier. has a lot on feed,sicknesses,and care.well worth the money.I'm abeginer and it helped me.has a good list of books and has very good photosof Foy's Pigeon Farms. a good all around book. espiecilly for me(a 11 yearold)sice I don't have ton's of money to spend. done by Daniel A. Jacobs age11 ... Read more

Product Description
"Mommy says Dad is a little pigeon toad." This and other homonyms are interpreted with literal illogic in zany illustrations by the multitalented Fred Gwynne. Full-color illustrations. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

A Little Pigeon Toad
This book was purchased for the enjoyment of young elementary school children.We have 3 others in the classrom by Gwynne and the children love the play on words in all of his books.

Cute book!
I remember the Moose book, so this was fun to read with my kids for the first time - I love play on language!!

Humorous Homonyms
A Little Pigeon Toad is a humorous picture book written as a series of single sentence vignettes that take place in a little girl's mind. Homonyms are used throughout this story and they confuse the little girl who interprets what her parents say differently than what they meant. Gwynne's book illustrates our ridiculous English language; for example, "Daddy wants a pool table," shows a table with a pool in it and everyone's swimming. The illustrations are literal interpretations of what the little girl thinks her parents are saying.
The words, easy to read, short and very simple, are intended for an audience between grades 3 and 5. But, adults or older readers would also enjoy this book.
Gwynne wrote and illustrated 13 other books: The King Who Rained, A Chocolate Moose For Dinner, The Sixteen Hand Horse, The Kings Trousers, and Easy to See Why. He attended Harvard and worked as an illustrator before starring as Herman on the TV show "The Munsters". Gwynne died in 1993.

Fun With English.
This is a delightful book to read to and with children. It introduces them not only to some of the idiosyncracies of the English language, but also to verbal humor. Fred Gwynne was not only a wonderful comic actor, but he was a great artist as well; the pictures in these books are soft and playful augmenting the confused phrases in the young girl's mind. Kids love this book and it is a joy to read.

playing with language and taking it literally!!
One of the masters of illustrating the ridiculousness of English, Mr. Gwynne has done it again by taking common idioms and interpreting them literally.The reader accompanies a young girl through all sorts of different, funny English sayings and phrases and takes them all literally.In the one that is the title of the book, she stand off in a field looking at a strange animal that has the body, legs and wings of a pigeon, but the brown, bumpy head of a toad.On a beautiful 2-page spread are three grizzly bears wearing kilts and tams dancing to the music of a fourth bear who plays the bagpipes.The text reads, "Grandma says our four bears came from Scotland."Meanwhile, Daddy wants a pool table and there are three feet in a yard.

As a teacher, I love to use this book to illustrate how funny and confusing English can be, even for a native speaker!When reading the book I tell them about the time when I was in elementary school and listening to the news reports of "gorilla warfare."Usually I ask students to compose and illustrate their own literal interpretation of common phrases ("hit any key to continue" is a perennial favorite).

Readers who enjoy this book may wish to check out some of the other, similar play on words books by Mr. Gwynne, such as "A Chocolate Moose for Dinner" or "The King Who Rained."Another excellent author readers may enjoy is Jon Agee and his books like "Who Ordered the Jumbo Shrimp? And Other Oxymorons."Beautifully illustrated and very funny, this book is highly recommended. ... Read more

Product Description
"Skutch combines his personal knowledge of pigeons that he has watched near his Costa Rican home with a masterful summary of the published literature on Columbids of the world. . . . The doves and pigeons of the world are a fascinating lot. Alexander Skutch, aided by Dana Gardner, captures the essence of their life and presents it in an easily digestible form. Although scientists may be exasperated by some of the elements of the presentation, any student of birds will be enlightened and entertained by reading Life of the Pigeon."--Ornithological Literature ... Read more

Product Description

Pigeon Trouble chronicles a foreign-born, birdphobic anthropologist's venture into the occult craft of pigeon shooting in the depths of Pennsylvania's anthracite coal country. Though initially drawn by a widely publicized antipigeon shoot protest by animal rights activists, the author quickly finds himself traversing into a territory much stranger than clashing worldviews—an uncanny world saturated with pigeon matters, both figuratively and literally.

What transpires is a sustained meditation on self-reflexivity as the author teeters at the limit of his investigation—his own fear of birds. The result is an intimate portrayal of the miners' world of conspiracy theory, anti-Semitism, and whiteness, all inscribed one way or another by pigeon matters, and seen through the anguished eyes of a birdphobe. This bestiary experiment through a phobic gaze concludes with a critique on the visual trope in anthropology's self-reflexive turn.

An ethnographer with a taste for philosophy, Song writes in a distinctive descriptive and analytical style, obsessed with his locale and its inhabitants, constantly monitoring his own reactions and his impact on others, but always teasing out larger implications to his subject.