Birds Books

It is a great book, answering everything an owner has to know for an African Grey parrot.

This little book is packed with information about how to care for, and be a good companion to, the incredibly intelligent African Grey parrot. It's a very good how-to with lots of advice and information - and more importantly, for those considering bringing one of these amazing birds into their families, it provides a good synopsis about the nature of the lifetime commitment that comes with that decision.

So please - if you're a new Grey owner, or just thinking about buying one, pick up this book. You'll be glad you did.

Amazon is a very Good service .. no waiting around ;)
an this book ha ha was very Nice only problem was so Nice I Ordered it twice an sent a copy to Mother as We both have African Grey Parrots an She said Richard
.. thats the Book I already sent to You
so Yes very Nice Book !

Book give us all knowledge to start take care of african grey parrots.

Very good Book

I recently read Maggie's book and was very delighted with it. I have never owned a bird, but have always been fascinated by them. This book really put some things in perspective for a complete novice on the nature of these birds. I think it is a very good guide for those of us who know absolutely nothing about them but would like to. Maggie was recently a guest on our online radio show and it was wonderful to hear her birds talking in the background as we spoke and listen to her share her complete love of and admiration for these wonderful birds.

This book has beautiful photography to go along with Maggie's simple to understand and implement writing in this book and I highly recommend it.

the type of reading material most grandparents search for to excite and encourage our youngsters' reading and interests.

I bought this book of poems while doing a them on Penguins. The children read Mr. Popper's Penguins and I used the Teachers printables for the unit. The poems were used during Writing to immerse the children in poems and cross theme with Penguins. This poem book and them can be used across all grades and guided reading levels. My 5 year old even loves it.

This book gives good basic information on penguins in a very fun format. The poems are catchy. I teach 3-6 year olds and I caught them repeating the phrases they liked the best. I highly recommend it for this age group.

I bought this book for my son since he is interested in penguins. Most penguin story books are promoted to toddlers or are penguin science books; not books for fictional reading for older children. Normally he doesn't choose to read but when he received this book for christmas, he immediately put down his other items and began to look through the book. Later that evening, before bedtime, he chose to read his book before going to sleep. He also liked that the book had poems; something he's been studying in school and hasn't seen how it could be fun to read. Now he likes them a little more. I'm glad it will help to promote more reading for him.

First of all, I love this book because I love penguins. However, as a piece of children's literature, it's so much more. This is an excellent example of how literature (poetry) and science can go hand and hand. There are some poems in this book that seem written just for fun, (e.g. "Be My Penguin"). However, most of the poems in this book are written about and around actual behaviors that penguins exhibit: from regurgiating their food to feed the young ("Regurgitate") to the motherly instincts of father penguins ("A Hatchling's Song" and "My Father's Feet") to poetic riddles about penguin predators (sea lion, killer whale). The book is charming, easy to read, and full of delightful penguin illustrations. A great gift for any child interesting in science or literature or anyone who (like me) just loves penguins.

One of the nicest little books on Hummingbirds I have ever seen. I have just recently become interested in hummingbirds so this is a great little book to have.

We enjoyed this picture-story of a mother hummingbird. Excellent photographs and clear text. A book every (humming)birdlover will enjoy.

This is a great book - I bought it for my mom and dad as they have lots of hummingbirds. But I had to check it out before I gave it to them. LOVED IT!!

First, a wonderful memoir of their cat, "Happy Birthday", and now an even more surprising story, an example of patience, persistence, perception and love. The adventures of hummingbirds, an entire life cycle in vivid beautiful color, and amazingly intimate details (this from a new Yorker whose only contact with bird life is pigeons). I think you'll be as delighted as I was.
- Jay Maisel

This exquisite book is about loving and caring for what one loves. The Carroll's masterpiece springs from their love for Honey the Hummingbird as they daily devote themselves to watching her from her return from wintering in Mexico, the laying of two eggs in a nest on a clothesline which she had previously built and inhabited, the birth of her babies, which the Carrolls named Ray and Zen, and her nurturing of them until and after their fledgling flights.

Everything about this book is done with devotion and great care. The text, written by Noriko Carroll, is a perfect accompaniment to what seems to me genius level photographs taken by Don Carroll. There are special lighting effects as a background to many of the photographs, and Mr. Carroll explains in an afterword called "Photographics Notes" that a mirror reflecting parts of his flower garden was used to create these stunning effects. I plan to order another copy of this book, take it to a framer and request that several of the photographs be removed and framed, to be hung on a wall of my home.

The description on the inside of the book jacket cover is even unique. It is not the standard patois one usually reads. It is done with great care, depth and intelligence. It is the finest of its kind I have ever read.

You will learn a great deal about hummingbirds, and if you have a backyard feeder, you will find out the proper and best way to maintain it. You will become more aware of the hummingbirds in your yard and in your life. And, unless you have a heart of stone, you will end up loving them, if you do not do so already.

I heartily thank the Carrolls for their magnificent undertaking of introducing us to the life and ways of this wonderful bird and her offspring. It is their artistic skills, their intact sense of wonder and awe (which so many tend to lose in adulthood), and their capacity to love which has brought this book to us. Quite a gift!

Early this spring (2008) I discovered a hummingbird nesting in the dwarf magnolia tree in our front yard. The nest was remarkably engineered and so well camouflaged that it was all but invisible to people walking by. I watched with fascination as the tenacious momma bird clung to her duties through the noise and commotion of an emergency sewer line repair taking place just five feet from her nest. The digging nearly cost us the tree due to the ground caving in around the trench. Thankfully, after the tractor operator learned of the hummer's plight, he was ever so careful to save the tree and her nest. The repair is done and now there are at least two tiny beaks poking up from the nest.

A good friend sent me this book after hearing my hummingbird story. It was a delight to read such a well written examination of hummingbird behavior and the special interactions of one hummer with one human being. The photographs are stunning and informative. After reading this book, I felt like I had developed a special bond with the momma hummer in our front yard. I felt like I knew her on some special level that would have been otherwise impossible. I highly recommend this book for bird lovers and nature lovers of all sorts.

which the talented and admirable writer, Arnette Heidcamp, leads the reader through - namely, the first months of a Hummingbird's life, from the beginning of winter to the advent of spring.

Ms. Heidcamp has amazing expertise in both bird and plant life, and what one appreciates also is her great love of them both. One wants to thank her for this lovely book and for the precious photographs which accompany it.

Throughout the book, the reader gets to know Squeak more and more, to understand the habits and traits of this darling hummingbird, and to realize what an intelligence it has. Ms. Heidcamp is dedicated and devoted and, yes, the ending is sad. I have to admit I shed a tear or two as a reader saying goodby. I can only imagine what an emotional time Ms. Heidcamp had to go through, after fostering this hummingbird so carefully and intimately, when the time came to set Squeak free.

I have alredy got several of Ms. Heidcamp's other books lined up to read, and even signed up with Random House to get an e-mail notice when she has a new book published.

I can't praise this wonderful literary and photographic pursuit highly enough. Reading this book was a true joy!

We were given this book that is filled with wonderful close up observations about one hummingbird. The author shares how she learned so much when a hummingbird over stayed his summer visit and how she helped "Squeak" until the following spring. The book was very enjoyable. We are hummingbird lovers and feed them.

A heart warming story and a great read. If you enjoy birds or wildlife you will like reading this book. The quick thinking and commitment by the author
saved this little hummers life.

Very beautiful photography and a touching story of how the author was able to create a relationship with a very tiny and fragile creature who otherwise would not have survived the winter.

I usually buy children's book for it's illustrations. This was totally the case with this book. It was, 'must get it for myself' kind of book. But my 3 years old daughter loves it as well. It's one of her favorite book and she just likes to look through it even when I'm not reading it to her. The story is so touching too but I think if the picture doesn't attract a child, no matter how great the story is it wouldn't cut it. This book totally succeeds in that aspect.

This is a bit embarrassing....coz i am definitely way over 10....but i fell in love with this book at first sight....it is one of the warmest and sweetest book i ever read....though there were little words throughout the whole book...i wanted to cry with joy when the boy and the penguin hugged together.... Mr Oliver....pls pls pls draw more books..

My 3 1/2 year old son and I LOVE this book. It is the sweetest story of a boy and his friend. Oliver Jeffers is so creative. I love his illustrations- so funny. This is a bedtime favorite. I'm definitely going to buy more of Jeffers' stories.

This book is near perfect. So close that I can't even think as to how it's not. A smart, sweet story of friendship that is a go-to for me as a read-aloud.

The premise is that a boy opens his door to find a penguin. He works to find out whether the penguin is lost, and to where should he be returned. Ultimately boy and penguin travel to the South pole. Boy leaves penguin on ice floe only to realize that the penguin was not lost, he was just lonely. Boy and penguin are reunited, leaving them and the reader happily ever after.

Much like Mo Willems, Oliver Jeffers invokes great emotion with simple drawings. A clever story paired with these illustrations makes for a must for anyone looking to entertain the 4-8 crowd.

Once again, Oliver Jeffers delivers a beautiful simple story. This one is about friendship. A boy finds a pinguin and tries to take him home, on the way, they become friends, and when he leaves him, he suddenly feels the void the pinguin left, only to find out that the pinguin didnt really want to go home in the first place. He wanted a friend. Also in spanish "Perdido y Encontrado".

My son and I were talking about this book today. It is about love and it's about pain and it's about how tears melt us and make us soft enough to be open to love. It always makes me cry--not because the bird dies but because the mountain is so touched it gushes a stream. It's a great book for people of any age! We are all like the mountain at different points in life. I'm a teacher so I also look at this book as a great entre for teaching how the earth changes and about the interaction between the land and animals. I've read this book to both my sons (who are now 10 and 14) many, many times and I've also read it to plenty of students. It's a beautiful book.

This wonderful book is not well known. I found it by accident and fell in love with it. To this day it still makes me cry. More children should be read this story. It is a beautiful story of hope and love. The hope that you will find love. It is great reading and has wonderful illustrations.
The book is more advanced and younger children may have a hard time reading it. But if ever you get the chance to read it to your children, I highly reccommend you do so. Alice McLerran is a fantastic storyteller, who makes the characters come to life.

This was a wonderful story as most reviewers have stated. It is a book choice on our pre-schools Raising a Reader program. It did, however, upset my [...] to the point of tears when the bird dies. She referred to it as the "dying" book every time she saw it. I heard similar comments from other parents at pre-school as well.

"The Mountain that Loved a Bird" is a magnificent picture book for all ages. A copy of it was loaned to me by a long-time school teacher whose opinion I respect, and yesterday, as my mother and I were making a long drive to see my grandmother, my mother read the book aloud to me. The soothing cadence of the writing added to the depth and magic of this most meaningful of parables.

The story is, indeed, about a mountain who comes to love a little bird named Joy. Joy, too, loves this mountain, and although she cannot live on the barren slopes of the mountain, where nothing grows, she promises to visit every year. How the grace and love of the bird comes to connect this mountain with its own beauty is, for me, a very meaningful part of this story. And too, the story is about how sometimes we love so very much, our hearts break with sorrow when we are separated from our loved ones. Most gently, "The Mountain that Loved a Bird" reaches into the hearts of readers and explores the nature of love. And most beautifully, the story offers a great and healing hope.

Half-way through my mother's reading of this book on that long drive, she stopped reading for a moment. I knew her eyes had filled with tears, as had mine. In this short time, we had come to love the mountain and the bird, and had come to see these characters within ourselves. This, to me, is a sign of a great work of art. I recommend this book on the highest possible terms. I recommend this book to parents who want to soothe their children with a soft and melodic cadence; I recommend this book to teachers who want to share how healing stories can be. I also recommend this book to those who are strong in the face of difficulty, and who sometimes secretly wish for solace. This book offers solace, comfort and hope to readers of all ages. The Little Prince, Zen Shorts (Caldecott Honor Book).

I bought this book because of the title as a gift for a neighbor child who enjoys watching birds at the feeder between our houses. When it arrived from Amazon, I read through it to ensure it was the right kind of book to give as a gift. It was moving and beautiful. Having recently lost my father, the message of loss and acceptance was bittersweet and definitely drew my tears, making me wonder if it would be an inappropriate gift. But reading this as a child could be the kind of early preparation that could make it easier for people to accept great loss (as well as smaller disappointments) later in life. I remember gaining that kind of value as a child from books like "The Velveteen Rabbit." If that kind of message is something you'd like to expose your kids to gently, this is a wonderful book for that purpose.

More than that, though, it's beautifully illustrated, and the repetition within the story seems like a comforting device for many children.

Have your children or students ever told you what they want for Christmas and after hearing it you internally cringe at the thought of them actually receiving it? Well, in `My Penguin Osbert' one little boy's Christmas wish becomes reality and its funny to see who ends up cringing...

Elizabeth Cody Kimmel tells the story of Joe, a classic case of Christmas-gifts-ignored-syndrome, who decides that he is going to help Santa get his gift absolutely correct this Christmas season. You see, Joe wants a penguin, a REAL penguin; he has to be exactly 10 inches tall, with a black and white coat, a yellow beak, a beating heart, and a name tag that reads "Osbert". And when Christmas rolls around he actually gets one.

H. B. Lewis' colorful illustrations will have you and your kids roaring with laughter as Joe's elated face gets more worried and worried by the pages. Very soon Joe begins to realize that taking care of a real penguin is quite a mission, especially if you would rather open the rests of you presents on Christmas morning than play in the very cold snow outside, or would prefer eating chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast and not creamed herring, or think that ice cream makes a great dessert but is not a good substitute for Play-Dough. In the end, Joe and Osbert's friendship will continue but in separate houses, after Joe takes Osbert to the penguin section of the city Zoo and Osbert falls in love with the idea of living there. The only question remains... has Joe learned his lesson about being careful what you wish for?

Maybe not, but who does...

This story is sweet - charming illustrations. On a larger scope, it can spark discussions about the responsibilities of owning a pet - it's not all fun and games. Nice for the winter season in general without being just a holiday book.

What a cute little book! My husband likes reading it to my son because he thinks it's funny, and my son likes it because he loves the pictures! Such a great addition to our sons book collection!

Despite the fact that this book has a young child writting lettrs to Santa, it is now February and we are still reading it! My son has hundreds of books and this is his favorite of all of them!

We read and discuss the lessons that are learned. My little one (he is 2) now knows that he has to take care of the people and animals he loves and not always do what HE wants.

We can not wait for more books by this wonderful author!

This picture book has a lot going for it: the story is about a penguin, if your child likes penguins then Osbert's story is a place for them to start reading. The story line is simple enough to glue a [...] to the page, yet magical enough to keep an [...] interested.

Osbert is a classic penguin, full of mischief and naive energy. He is a lovable character.

Elizabeth Cody Kimmel writes with a consistent style. It is a great little book that's sure to please parents and pre-reader age children.

The illustrations and art direction by H.B. Lewis are very nice indeed, in some instances truly wonderful. This is a book that will stay in your child's library for a long, long time.

This is GREAT! Well, done! Brava!!!

I wish I had read this book earlier, for many reasons! One, because it will make a fabulous gift for my friends, mom, aunts, etc. And also because it has some really practical advice for dilemmas I have found myself in! I definitely recommend this book, for yourself or as a gift for the women in your life!

This is such a fun book. The author basically tells us how to do stuff without being boring and its one how to book that I'm planning on keeping. This is a great book for anyone. I highly recommend it.

This book is a perfect college graduation gift, or for a friend just moving into her first apartment or house, and/or your mom. It's one of those books that should be left out for frequent browsing. The writing is fun, the topics are useful. Ladies who've read this book will seem to be more clever than their friends, which is always fun.

This book is a must, especially for women! The information is practical and the writers have a witty style that keeps your attention and makes you want more! I learned so much about the things most people my age are afraid to ask or are too embarrassed to say they don't know by now. Hats off to you, Elizabeth and Elizabeth!

This book is a must, especially for women! The information is practical and the writers have a witty style that keeps your attention and makes you want more! I learned so much about the things most people my age are afraid to ask or are too embarrassed to say they don't know by now. Hats off to you, Elizabeth and Elizabeth!

I remember reading this book way back in Grade 12. Its not so way back considering that it was probably two or three years ago. This book ranks among the best war books I have ever read. In some places, I laughed so hard I nearly dropped a lung. In other places, I remember being so sombre and imaging the horror experienced by Mowat and his band of Hasty Ps.

This is a must read for any Canadian even remotely interested in the Canadian role in World War II.

I didn't really want to read another war book, but a friend convinced me he thought this was the best one ever written. However, I came away from it thinking it wasn't as good as "The Forgotten Soldier". The last chapter about the battle over the Moro river was just as good. However, the depth of the first three chapters I felt was diminished by the author's sense of humor and his tendency to exaggerate. For example, the dying of the inscrutable A K Long - taking out his pipe for a smoke and a book to read when he was so seriously wounded, calm in the midst of terror - struck me as unrealistic. In sum, this was a good book but I would say, not really memorable.

I bought this book almost in a state of doubt. I had seen the name Farley Mowat and automatically assumed it was a good piece of writing as is most if not all of his other pieces of work. He is perhaps one if not the best Canadian writer ever to pick up a pen and paper. And after reading this book, i quickly realized why.

I had been searching for a book that could possibly inform and educate me on a Canadian's standpoint of the second world war. I quickly realized that I had picked out a good book. It puts you in the mind of a young man reaching adulthood and as had every other young man at the time, had his mind set in joining his fellow Canadians and Allies in the battle. This mindframe had been to be fairly excited and actually happy to go to the frontlines. As it had obviously not been programmed to the unfortunate reality of the war itself. Farley Mowat tells a great and wonderful story of his life before and during the timeline of the Canadian military's part in the war itself. Whether it was the obvious anxiety of waiting to be shipped overseas to the frontlines, or the brutal and graphic reality of the battle itself, Mowat unveils a true and dramtically emotional story of World War II.

Myself I was seaching for a book such as this one. It retold the historically correct graphic and terrifying nature of war, more specifically that of the Second World War. I know that one such as myself will never know and hopefully never experience the reality of war but, I can honestly say that I have infinite gratitude and thanks for those who fought for our freedom. All in all, a WONDERFUL book and I highly recommend it to any Farley Mowat fans or anyone who likes great historical literature. I just cannot seem to express how great of a book this really was. Hope you like it too!

Undeniably the best war memoir written by a Canadian who served in the Second World War. The book chronicles Mowat's experiences in 1943 as a participant in the invasion of Sicily and Italy, and in classic Mowat style captures both the stark reality and lighter side of his experiences. Mowat also wrote a history of his unit--one of the first books he published, and which was later revised (and is somewhat difficult to find at the moment)--entitled The Regiment.

This book was a great surprise for me. I picked it up at a local library because I saw the name Mowat and thought, "Funny, Isn't he a Canadian naturalist? What's he doing in the History section?" What followed was a fascinating voyage of war,adventure,hilarity and,ultimately,tragedy and pain. Walking into the experience of WWII with a completely innocent demeanor, anxious to get into a fight, this brilliant writer has many funny and almost fatal false starts. When the fighting gets serious, the glib descriptions of his units treacherous challenges are positively riveting. I COULD NOT PUT THIS BOOK DOWN. If you like your war personal, exciting and honest, get this book to a comfortable chair and be prepared to not move for a night and a day. A brilliant book by a Canadian national treasure.

A great book that talks about other animals that lay eggs other than chickens. I read this book to my preschool children and they loved it very much. The pictures are bright and very colourful. It's a must buy!

This was my favorite book growing up, because of it's catchy rhyming story, accompanied by colorful, ecclectic illustrations... and now, it is my sons favorite book - so much so, that I'm now looking into buying Ruth Heller's other science books. My 4 year old loves them, and the colorful picutres hold my 2 year olds attention (a feat in itself) so well, I'm amazed!

I'm so glad I've kept this book around long enough to pass it on to my son, who already has a great understanding of any animal, who is an "Oviparous"

I think it's really great that Ruth Heller introduces a complex subject in a children's book without talking down to the children. It's great that she uses "big" words like "oviparous"--kids, after all, can remember lengthy dinosaur names; there's no reason why they can't handle other long scientific words.
But I do have slight qualms. For instance, the part about amphibians says that amphibians don't have claws--what about African clawed frogs?
The illustrations are engaging, and the use of rhyme in prose makes the text flow nicely. The subject is interesting, too. I just wonder a bit about the accuracy of the "facts" presented here.

I enjoy the realistic non-anthropomorphic pictures Ruth Heller, author/illustrator, placed on each page. They are colorful, accurate and fun to look at. Some pages have just one animal and other pages are filled with lively looking insects and their eggs. I also enjoyed how she showed the size, coloring, shape and form difference between all types of eggs. I learned a lot from this book and think that kids over 3 will enjoy having this read to them. The only downfall I see in this story is that sometimes the words and sentences are in rhyming form and sometimes they aren't. I would've preferred one OR the other, not both. It doesn't flow as well with the two methods of writ, but other than that it was a good book.

Egg lovers, egg heads will especially enjoy this book by Ruth Heller a beautiful story. Oviperous you are, if you slithered or crawled or burst from your shell. Lots of children certainly love the expressions eggs generate. Crack open that shell and enjoy this play on the question, "Which came first the chicken or the egg?" Egg-xactly.

I had the pleasure of meeting Ruth Heller and husband in two completely different times in my life, in a bookstore in Carmel and on another rainy day in a bookstore in Ventura,CA. Both times I had her books, didn't know she was there, coincidental encounters, so I could and did get autographs. My girls loved her Designs for Coloring: Birds (Designs for Coloring), hint, hint parents. She was so tiny...and obviously a lovely person to get to say to, "I'm a teacher that always wanted to thank you for...."

Right now my first graders are reading about chicks, ducks and other egg tales. So showing the Reading Rainbow that contains this book being featured and read aloud is perfect. Heller's book is read by Georgia Engles with her interesting lilt it makes the poetic text very nice for them. It's still a bit hard to read for a few but I do have a set left over from days I taught not from canned scripts but from content connected literature. A few pieces of this text I'll quote hoping to get the sound which is so gentle and lovely, " Chickens lay the eggs you buy......Chickens aren't the only ones. Every bird wild or tame does the same. The ostrich lays the largest egg, the hummingbird the smallest. .."
As you read her lovely drawings bring you the text illustrated very factually and wonderful rendered. I always see those psychedelic 60 rock posters. I don't know why, it just happens in my head. I always enjoy teaching with Heller books. You go on to be introduced to reptiles, amphibians, fish, insects..."mermaid's purses", seahorses...moon snails, lots of ways to appreciate the egg layers.

If you enjoy video showing the Reading Rainbow: Farm Life with this is a great idea because you'll go to the farm to see a chick break out of the egg, watch loggerhead turtles be laid and hatched and see some great facts about egg layers. I can't imagine Ruth Heller's book out of the context of this tape because it expands the constructs so beautifully.

And if you love this "Animals Born Alive and Well (Picture Books) " is another great one from the author.