Book of North American Birds

by Reader's Digest Association

Scientifically accurate illustrations and essays guide the bird watcher in identifying and locating more than 570 common and rare species

Genres: Nature, Reference, Birds, Nonfiction, Animals, Science, Collections

576 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 1990

About the author

The Reader's Digest Association, Inc. is a global media and direct marketing company based in Chappaqua, New York, best known for its flagship publication founded in 1922, Reader's Digest. The company's headquarters are in New York City, where it moved from Pleasantville, New York.

The company was founded by DeWitt and Lila Wallace in 1922 with the first publication of Reader's Digest magazine, but has grown to include a diverse range of magazines, books, music, DVDs and online content.

Reviews

[Melki · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've never been much of a fan of Reader's Digest publications; in fact, the ONLY books I approve of cutting up, and using for art/craft purposes are their condensed books. Had this been spine out at the library book sale, I'd have certainly passed it by. However, it was laying cover up, and this is the cover of my book:



Those eyes are what really caught my eye.

And, it's a fine book for birders: paintings, rather than photos, which I prefer, plus the usual maps, and identifying data. Its large size and heft - it covers 600 birds - keep it from being a practical field guide, but it's lovely for perusing, and musing.



One odd thing: many of the birds' descriptive paragraphs are almost little stories, like:

Late in the prairie farmer's day, but still before vesper sparrows begin their evening song, the lark buntings come down to drink.

And:

Pale March sunlight spreads across a world bleached free of color. In a ravaged marsh a glossy blackbird climbs along a cattail stalk and pauses, waiting for some unseen signal.

Is this a Reader's Digest thing? Do their readers need to be coaxed into reading with fictionalized tales of nature, rather than the cold, hard facts? It makes me kind of glad Roger Tory Peterson didn't feel the need to stretch his creative writing muscles.

All the same - this is a keeper.

[Richard · Rating 5 out of 5]

The illustrations--which are paintings, not photographs--are exquisite. This book packs a lot of information (e.g. appearance, habitat, life cycle, migration, food etc.) about the birds under discussion. It even includes a section, broken down by geographical location, about where birders can go to view the birds. And yet, the approach is largely literary, as if some editor were making a desperate effort to make science attractive for non-science types. However, these literary descriptions and anecdotes are interesting in their own way; sometimes they are aesthetic or humorous or even historical, giving us details of courtship rituals, of defense against predators or of how the bird in question was first discovered or acquired its name.

[J. Boo · Rating 4 out of 5]

DS2 (5) is really enamored of this book, and the beautifully painted pictures that cover a third of the page. There is a nice segue into geography, too, as we look at the maps and determine if e.g. the bird lives in the arctic, another fad he has passed through.

Especially now that he can read, he does not like me summarizing, so we're really getting into very specific details of bird behavior. I don't mind much, as the writing is rather evocative. Flipping randomly through, here's the Yellow-headed Blackbird,

In a Wyoming marsh a burly blackbird hitches himself to a bullrush stalk, his golden hood glistening in the sun. Slowly, deliberately, he fans his glossy tail. With the eyes of his intended upon him, he opens his wings in a dramatic gesture of appeal. Then bowing low, till his golden crown is nearly flush with his tail, he opens his mouth and emits about the nastiest sound ever heard from a bird's mouth...

I've just gone and looked it up, and yes, the Yellow-headed Blackbird does make a rather awful noise. Like a rusty gate, say these people: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wPX5H...

As of late June 2021, we're officially on page 82 of the 523 with bird descriptions, though we have done a lot of skipping ahead to visit waterfowl found later in the book. I'm not sure I hope he keeps up with it all the way through, but it's definitely been educational for both of us.

I will try to post some of his fan art.

[Dyslexa · Rating 5 out of 5]

OH MY GOODNESS, the illustrations in this book are absolutely breathtaking! While I'm not an ornithologist, I can't help but appreciate the beauty of these bird depictions. Although I'm aware that environmental changes like global climate change, pollution, and deforestation have likely impacted bird populations, I assume that this guide is still a valuable resource.

What I enjoyed most about this book was the opportunity to discover and learn about birds I had never encountered or even heard of before. Having never ventured beyond the northwest corner of the USA, I was astounded by the incredible diversity of bird species across the entire expanse of the USA and Canada.

[Tonia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nice guide to North American Birds! Includes maps of where the birds can be found, details on their identification, nesting habits and food and color illustrations.

[Lily · Rating 5 out of 5]

My family has used this book several times to identify birds. Even found out that a species that was raiding our feeders is not supposed to be in our part of the country! It is our favorite bird book on our shelf.

[Nicholas & Megan Clinch · Rating 5 out of 5]

The word portraits are just as vivid as the illustrations, lovely to read aloud & draw from. A natural history favorite and treasured Library sale find!

[Judith the Book Gobbler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reference

[Willow · Rating 4 out of 5]

{April 8, 2019}
This has been a helpful resource for us as we work through The Burgess Bird Book!

The illustrations are beautiful and we have used them as a reference in attempting to color field markings accurately. The text for the birds we've studied so far has been interesting and has reinforced what we've absorbed through the Burgess book.

We haven't read all the text yet and will likely use this as reference through the next several years.

[Cws]

J598.29Rea

[Grandma · Rating 5 out of 5]

If your a bird watcher, you need this book

[Katrin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've had this book for awhile but wanted to recommend it to my "friends." It's an excellent reference book which I have used often to identify local birds.
Katrin

[Tea · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great book to have, the illustrations are really well done and the information is very nice for quick references. I love the little illustrations that give a small fact about the bird

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Emma and I have loved this book and finding all the birds we have been spying on. My favorite birds are the Mountain Bluebirds we kept watching up at Yellowstone Memorial Day weekend.

[Lori Butterfield · Rating 5 out of 5]

My children have poured over this book for hours, identifying backyard birds, copying illustrations, and simply learning more about birds during their quiet reading time. They love this book!

[Jenna Luciuk · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very informative.

[Betsy Murphy · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's a little old but still have some great info about birds .