These are the 20 books that I have reviewed on this blog in the last 12 months.
They will all be the perfect present for someone this Christmas – it’s just a case of matching the book to the person.
The publication of The Atlas and Birds and People were both ‘events’ as well as ‘books’ and I am very glad to have them both but that doesn’t mean they will suit everyone.
Britain’s Freshwater Fishes by Mark Everard.
Finding Birds in Southeast Arizona by Tucson Audubon
Feral by George Monbiot
A World in one Cubic Foot by David Liittschwager
Bird Atlas 2007-11 by Dawn Balmer et al.
The Crossley ID Guide by Richard Crossley and Dominic Couzens
Winging It by Andrew Fallon
Birduder 344 by Rob Sawyer
Tracks and Signs by Henrik Olsen
The World’s Rarest Birds by Erik Hirschfeld et al.
Scilly Birding by Simon Davey
The Natural Eye by the Society of Wildlife Artists
The Warbler Guide by Tom Stephenson and Scott Whittle
Mariposa Road by Bob Pyle
Birds of the Heart of England edited by Trevor Easterbrook
Birds, Coping with an Obsession by Derek Moore
Birds and People by Mark Cocker and David Tipling
Looking for the Goshawk by Conor Jameson
Bird Conservation by David Williams et al.
Breeding Birds of North Wales by Anne Brenchley et al.
And the perfect Christmas present for some people (maybe for you yourself) will still be, for the second Christmas, Fighting for Birds which is available from Amazon and my excellent publisher Pelagic Publishing.
Fighting for Birds has had uniformly excellent reviews and now has 22 5-star customer reviews on Amazon and no lower ratings (unlike, in all modesty, any of the books listed above).
Some quotes from readers:
‘Fighting for Birds inspired me so much I am now on an HNC countryside & environmental management course’
‘thought-provoking, amusing and fascinating book’
‘I am one of those elusive twenty-something female birders, embarking on a career change into ecology and conservation. I’m studying for an MSc in Environmental Assessment and Management… Anyway – your book has inspired me more than ever to be one of the good guys and to keep trying to get the message across, while giving me a better sense of the politics and challenges that surround nature conservation.’
‘You cover so many issues in the book, many of which I have not studied in depth yet, but feel that I know a lot more about now (biofuels, grouse shooting, CAP…). Very useful for someone who is just starting out and has a lot to learn!’
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From the likes and dislikes I’d guess there’s a bit of resistance to mark’s trumpet blowing – a reflection, I suspect, of the way many people reading this blog would react themselves – me included. As a forester I’m naturally probably even more averse to claiming credit (especially personal) than many conservationists. Mix it up with scientific reticence : ‘we’re pretty certain it looks like this but can’t be 100%’ and you’ve got a powerful mix – but one that bothers our opponents not one iota – whether it’s climate change deniers or Songbird Survival ruthlessly picking over any rubbish they get their hands on to make their point. I’d never condone that sort of dishonesty – but we have to respond if not in kind, at least loudly and forcefully and I’m not getting fed up with Mark plugging the sort of book we need much more – we need to be out there telling the story and inspiring people to believe they really can make a difference – go for it, Mark !
Mark – ever thought of sending Owen Paterson a copy of Fighting For Birds as a Christmas present?
MK – thought of it. But then decided I wasn’t prepared to make the investment.