Book reviews

Book reviews

Read reviews of the books we hold in the Chris Mead Library, written by our in-house experts. A selection of book reviews also features in our members’ magazine, BTO News.

Featured review

All the Birds of the World

Lynx have had a long-term project to produce an exhaustive guide to the birds of the world. It started out with the 17 volumes of the Handbook of the Birds of the World (1992–2013) which has family and species accounts for all birds. This was followed by the two volumes of the Illustrated Checklist of the Birds of the World (2014–2016). They have now published the third and final stage of this avian odyssey with this current book.

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All the Birds of the World

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ID Handbook of European Birds

Author: Nils van Duivendijk

Publisher: Princeton University Press, Princeton

Published: 2024

The ID Handbook of European Birds is divided into two volumes, covering non-passerines and passerines. The first thing apparent is the sleek design and the number of high-quality photographs. Every ...

Birds & Flowers: An Intimate 50 Million Year Relationship

Author: Jeff Ollerton

Publisher: Pelagic Publishing, Exeter

Published: 2024

Perhaps because I don’t have much of a scientific background, I picked up this book and assumed that it was ‘just’ about the link between birds and flowers. However, it is about so much more about ...

Aves Elektron: Death of the Nightingale

Author: MiE Fielding

Publisher: Voert Digital, New York

Published: 2024

At first glance this book appears to be a somewhat random collection of black and white photographs of, mostly, dead birds, litter, and housing developments. But as one delves deeper, it becomes ...

Maurice Bird: The Gilbert White of The Broads

Author: James Parry

Publisher: Norfolk & Norwich Naturalists’ Society

Published: 2024

The name Maurice Bird might not the most instantly recognisable, but it may be familiar to anyone who has read the author James Parry’s 2020 work (co-written with former BTO Director Dr Jeremy ...

Bird Pellets: A Complete Photographic Guide

Author: Ed Drewitt

Publisher: Pelagic Publishing, Exeter

Published: 2024

Many of us will have found owls pellets while on a walk, and some may have even extracted the contents to see what has been eaten, but most will be unfamiliar with the range of species which produce ...

Call of the Kingfisher

Author: Nick Penny

Publisher: Bradt Guides, Chesham

Published: 2023

Following the author’s journey along the River Nene at Oundle in Northamptonshire, this book is set out in specific months of the year. The reader can fall into step with the writer as he explores the ...

The Best Nest Contest

Author: Luke Western

Publisher: Brown Dog Books, Bath

Published: 2024

Luke Western was inspired to produce this charming book, which he wrote and illustrated, upon introducing garden birds to his baby daughter. The book itself is aimed at slightly older children – aged ...

Australian Bird Guide: Concise Edition

Author: Jeff Davies, Peter Menkhorst, Danny Rogers, Rohan Clarke, Peter Marsack & Kim Franklin

Publisher: Christopher Helm, London

Published: 2022

Although there are many bird books available for birders visiting Australia, the best by far is The Australian Bird Guide. However, this book is somewhat too large, heavy and bulky for use in the ...

From Wasteland to Wetland: A History of Woolston Eyes

Author: Brian Martin

Publisher: Privately published

Published: 2023

As a birder growing up in Greater Manchester in the 1990s, I would regularly phone Birdline Northwest (remember those days of having to phone up for bird news?!) and very often, the site Woolston Eyes ...
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