The Birds and the Beasts Were There

by Margaret Millar

Book by Millar, Margaret

Genres: Nonfiction, Memoir

241 pages, Paperback

First published January 28, 1971

About the author

Margaret Ellis Millar (née Sturm) was an American-Canadian mystery and suspense writer. Born in Kitchener, Ontario, she was educated there and in Toronto. She moved to the United States after marrying Kenneth Millar (better known under the pen name Ross Macdonald). They resided for decades in the city of Santa Barbara, which was often utilized as a locale in her later novels under the pseudonyms of San Felice or Santa Felicia.

Millar's books are distinguished by sophistication of characterization. Often we are shown the rather complex interior lives of the people in her books, with issues of class, insecurity, failed ambitions, loneliness or existential isolation or paranoia often being explored with an almost literary quality that transcends the mystery genre. Unusual people, mild societal misfits or people who don't quite fit into their surroundings are given much interior detail. In some of the books we are given chilling and fascinating insight into what it feels like to be losing touch with reality and evolving into madness. In general, she is a writer of both expressive description and yet admirable economy, often ambitious in the sociological underpinnings of the stories and the quality of the writing.

Millar often delivers effective and ingenious "surprise endings," but the details that would allow the solution of the surprise have usually been subtly included, in the best genre tradition. One of the distinctions of her books, however, is that they would be interesting, even if you knew how they were going to end, because they are every bit as much about subtleties of human interaction and rich psychological detail of individual characters as they are about the plot.

Millar was a pioneer in writing intelligently about the psychology of women. Even as early as the '40s and '50s, her books have a very mature and matter-of-fact view of class distinctions, sexual freedom and frustration, and the ambivalence of moral codes depending on a character's economic circumstances. Her earliest novels seem unusually frank. Read against the backdrop of Production Code-era movies of the time, they remind us that life as lived in the '40s and '50s was not as black-and-white morally as Hollywood would have us believe.

While she was not known for any one recurring detective (unlike her husband, whose constant gumshoe was Lew Archer), she occasionally used a detective character for more than one novel. Among her occasional ongoing sleuths were Canadians Dr. Paul Prye (her first invention, in the earliest books) and Inspector Sands (a quiet, unassuming Canadian police inspector who might be the most endearing of her recurring inventions). In the California years, a few books featured either Joe Quinn, a rather down-on-his-luck private eye, or Tom Aragorn, a young, Hispanic lawyer.
Sadly, most of Millar's books are out of print in America, with the exception of the short story collection The Couple Next Door and two novels, An Air That Kills and Do Evil In Return, that have been re-issued as classics by Stark House Press in California.

In 1956 Millar won the Edgar Allan Poe Awards, Best Novel award for Beast in View. In 1965 she was awarded the Woman of the Year Award by the Los Angeles Times. In 1983 she was awarded the Grand Master Award by the Mystery Writers of America in recognition of her lifetime achievements.

Reviews

[jonah]

An engaging and thoughtful memoir of the author's birding life. One of the things I enjoyed most about this book was how relatable everything was. As an avid birder on the West side, every bird mentioned performed similar behaviors that I have observed, and every first sighting of a particular species was quite familiar to myself. Millar moved smoothly from casual bird feeder tangents to more complex and curious behavioral questions and studies. At this point in the book (roughly halfway), it was five stars in my ‘birder’ mind. However, as the book progressed, it deteriorated to four stars due to more religious tangents (ex: “birds aren’t the most intelligent of God’s creatures”), non-scientific blabber (ex: “the father oriole took care of his daughter”), and the author’s everyday life (no longer about the birds). However, she managed to wrap up nicely by connecting the fires around her home to the ecosystem in the same area. In short, a fun romp through a birder’s beginnings and the growth of knowledge in regards to the biology behind most species.

4/5


Acorn Woodpecker (Melanerpes formicivorus)

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful, gently-observed recounting of the author's birdwatching in 1960s California. As a wildfire tears through the landscape in the last chapters, the book turns into an environmental elegy for a lost place and time.

[Hannah Sentenac · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lovely picture of Southern California's wildlife.

[Kevin Parsons · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book for a variety of reasons. As someone new to birding I understood her feelings both towards the birds and the characteristics of birding as a hobby. I also enjoyed reading about the Santa Barbara community which I have visited and loved. It was also interesting as a historical document - birding and Santa Barbara were both quite different in the 60's and it was fun to read about how things have both changed and those that remained the same. It was also quite compelling to read about the fire that did so much damage to the community during the period of time she covers and reminds us how unique Southern California is compared to so much of the rest of the country. Here in the East we don't take rain for granted and typically don't have to worry about fire or mudslides. Highly recommended.

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quotable:
The lone bandtail is a quiet bird with little to say as he goes about his business. But when twenty or thirty of them attempt to land on a narrow perch the resulting noise sounds as if they were approaching the boozy climax of an avian cocktail party with every guest trying to communicate at once in grunts and clucks and squawks.

The experts tell me… that when a bird is injured by a window strike it should be left strictly alone. Handling it, no matter how gently, may result in a fatal stroke or heart attack caused by fear.

[Foggygirl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent read

An entertaining and informative read about the joys and tragedies of bird and wildlife watching in southern California in the 1960s

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Margaret Millar's lively narrative depicts the wildlife at her feeding stations in all seasons, from the shimmering rufous hummingbirds moving through on their migratory routes, to the playful raccoons washing their food. Then came the Coyote fire, rushing down from the mountains, sparing Millar's house but burning the trees and brush harboring her wild friends. In the aftermath, Millar hiked through the ashes and watched the canyon slowly heal itself."
~~back cover

Nice descriptions of the various birds and her efforts to add to her life list. Very vivid description of the fire, and the aftermath.