Customer Reviews

Birdsong by the Seasons: A Year of Listening to Birds

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This is a wonderful book--so different from his Singing Life of Birds that won the John Burroughs Medal, yet every bit as good if not even better. Kroodsma's text and two CDs of bird songs take me with him to experience each dawn as it unfolds throughout the year, from January through December. Through each chapter, I learn, I often laugh, and I reach the end in awe with a much better appreciation of the complexity and beauty of birds.

My favorite vignettes? It's so hard to choose among them since each of the 24 chapters takes me to a different experience with different birds and places. Some that especially stand out for me include the all-night symphony of sound from wading birds on roost in January in the Everglades; the deafening clamor of tens of thousands of cranes and snow geese flying overhead on the Platte River in Nebraska in March; how the dawn chorus at a cemetery in June brings back memories of a special birding companion; listening to the next generation of singers, as a young song sparrow, house wren, chickadee, goldfinches, and other songbirds practice their songs in August; hilltop listening to calls of migrant birds throughout September nights; the power and majesty of Mr. Grouse in October, as he struts on stage, drums, exits, and returns for repeat performances; and the anticipation and excitement felt on a late December day, when a burst of singing by titmice, robins, chickadees, nuthatches, and other songbirds declare that the winter solstice is in fact their first day of spring.

I read Sand County Almanac some thirty years ago, and have been waiting and looking for another book that could inspire me and take me to nature as Leopold did. Finally, Birdsong by the Seasons is that book. It is truly a treasure, a book that reveals the magic of birds like no other book I know.

Donald Kroodsma may be a retired University Professor, but his writing is prose at its best. As a scientist and with experience writing prose, I can tell you that Kroodsma spins wonderful spell binding tales matched only by his own recordings of birds from your backyard, and those from exotic rainforests. Each chapter is of a different bird in a different season, so we get stories from wintering robins, orioles incubating their eggs, and fledglings learning their song-craft. I received this book as a gift and whole heartedly recommend it to anyone who loves reading and listening birds.

BIRDSONG BY THE SEASONS; A YEAR OF LISTENING TO BIRDS comes with two CDs of birdsong and offers insights into seasonal birds and the different songs they song. Sonograms plot a sound's frequency and analyzes the foundations of melody, while lively discussions cover bird activities and changing seasonal trends. Any library strong in birding and any individual interested in a more in-depth coverage of birdsong than mere identification alone, needs this.

For anyone interested in bird songs/calls this book is highly recommended. It is just as good as Donald Kroodsma'a prior book "The Singing Life Of Birds" but many chapters focus on calls rather than songs so that it is some ways complimentary to the prior publication. Some highlights for me were the sections on the winter robin roost , the white-eyed vireo(which mimics calls rather than songs), the chapter on young birds practicing their subsongs and the chapter on winter solsctice which Mr. Kroodsma proclaims is really the first day of spring (not the first day of winter)to the avian mind. As was the case with the previous book I will henceforth listen to bird vocalizations in a different way when I venture into the field

CBT

Birds are my favorite creature so I'm always on the lookout for books to add to my library. Having a cd with bird songs also makes the birds come alive. Beautiful photos and information about each bird. Nice coffee table book for the whole family to enjoy.