Customer Reviews

Pale Male: Citizen Hawk of New York City

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This is an amazing book, beautifully written and illustrated, and appealing to readers of all ages. This spring my elementary school ordered several copies for a bird/nature study. After multiple readings, the children were inspired to research and create their own nature books; their efforts were astounding and are a testimony to the book's beauty and appeal.

Janet Schulman's PALE MALE: CITIZEN HAWK OF NEW YORK CITY tells of a rare red-tailed hawk's appearance in an oasis in the center of New York City. There he finds a mate and they build a nest atop one of Fifth Avenue's swankiest apartment buildings. Fine watercolors by Meilo So enhance this story of an urban legend in a picturebook requiring good reading skills but promising much.

Pale Male Citizen Hawk of New York is a factual story that seems like a fairy tale. Children can learn about life in the city and how a hawk chose to live and survive in a chaotic city with a nearby park with areas that make it hard to believe that it is in New York. A lovely book about a beautiful creature and his family.

An unusual event happened long ago in Manhattan. A red-tailed hawk appeared to catch a thermal and was gliding over the colorful autumn foliage in Central Park. He had the perfect vantage point for catching his dinner and his "wingspan of four feet" enabled him to stay aloft until he spotted something to eat. Most red-tail hawks would only stop at the park for a short period of time and would later move onto a more rural, hawk friendly setting, but this male was different because he "liked what he saw and he stayed." The birders of New York City were ecstatic and, unbeknownst even to them, would be watching this hawk for a long time. "Pale Male," as he was dubbed, was determined to be a Manhattanite.

He was a rascal who "dive-bombed tasty pigeons and rats at their litter-can snack bars" and critters like squirrels were not immune to his antics. There was one critter that soon attracted his interest and that was another redtail. His courtship dance began and he was determined to win her over, not only for himself, but to the city. Their first nests were failures and later, when she was injured, he was fortunate enough to find another mate. Pale Male, who had taste, began to build a nest on 927 Fifth Avenue. His nest was destroyed by the owner of the building, but the couple persevered and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service intervened. The babies began to arrive and over the years there were more until . . . the owners destroyed not only the nest, but the entire building spike structure Pale Male needed for his nests. Would this famous Manhattanite be forced to leave the city for a new home in the country?

This is a marvelous mini biography of one of Manhattan's most famous residents. The storyline just pulls the reader along. Even though I knew the ending, the tension made me anxious to find out what would happen to Pale Male and his mate. The book is in picture book format and is what many call "wordy," but it is the type of story that will draw a great deal of interest from the very young to the adult audience. The watercolors are nicely detailed and capture the busyness and activity of the city as well as the sereneness of the park. In the back of the book is a more detailed discussion of the author's experience and thoughts about Pale Male and his descendants in New York. This book is a 2009-10 Red Clover nominee in Vermont.

A beautifully written story that brought tears to my eyes! The artwork is
beautiful as well!

This was a Texas Bluebonnet Award nominee last year, but I decided to reread it for my upcoming trip to New York. Pale Male is a red-tailed hawk who chose to live in the posh neighborhood next to Central Park. The owners of the property didn't appreciate Pale Male, but the bird lovers rose to his defense and Pale Male was allowed to stay.

This book was on my son's summer reading list. We checked this out from the library, and after reading it I'm so glad I did not spend my money on this book. Like another reviewer, I too was really enjoying reading this book with my 6 year-old, until we got to the dig about President Bush. I saw no reason to bash the president personally, but the author clearly has his own agenda that he's trying to push in his "children's book."

Having lived in NYC during the time when Pale Male first built his nest, I remember all the excitment that the feathered creature generated in the city. I was happy to see a children's book on the topic and looked forward to sharing the account with my own children and perhaps intergrating it into a class I teach on children's literature. The book was pleasant to read and the illustrations were beautiful. My children enjoyed listening to the story and were inspired to learn more about the hawk and his offspring. I was happy enough with the book until the author decided to take a dig at former President Bush and his administration. Seems that no forum is safe from Bush bashing. The liberal indoctination of our youth in unabashedly present in our schools and we all need to be aware of these subtle and not so subtle messages that are children are being fed everyday.