Tag Archives: Birds

Words about the Birds: Birder, She Wrote and Hello Birdy

2 Aug

Birder, She Wrote
by Donna Andrews
Donna Andrews’s Meg Langslow Mystery Series is one of my favorites with its cast of quirky characters amongst Meg’s large extended family and the local towns people in the fictitious Carephilly, VA. Each of her mysteries tie in with different species of birds. In the case of Birder, She Wrote, it is the backyard hummingbirds, like the ones I always envy my Virginia relatives for enjoying. Meg has a dilemma that one of her’s is a “bully bird” unwilling to share the sugar water feeder with the other hummers. Andrews infuses her cozies with humor and heart (she typically has two releases each year, one around beach read season and the other for the holidays). Unfortunately though this might be the perfect book for you to enjoy sipping an Arnold Palmer while relaxing in a hammock, Meg’s plans are dashed when her family and friends need her help. While she assists her grandmother Cordelia and a local deacon in finding a lost Pre Civil War Era African-American Cemetery, they discover a more recent body dumped there. The book also weaves in the very contemporary issue of NIMBY (not in my backyard) issues when people move from more urban to rural areas and must learn to balance their expectations of country life with the realities (living near farms can be literally stinky). Birder, She Wrote is the 33rd in the series with the 34th, Let It Crow! Let It Crow! Let It Crow! scheduled to be out on Oct 10.

Hello Birdy
Hello Birdy is a fun bingeable 6 episode (27 minute each) series from Australia hosted by award winning Aussie actor, William McInnes. Each episode covers a different categories of Australian birds including parrots, ancient birds, song birds, raptors, pests, and travelers. Back before I had decided on librarianship, I had contemplated a career in ornithology so this show was very much in my wheelhouse, but even if you are just a casual birdwatcher, this series will still delight. The episodes are infused with lots of humor and will be fun for the whole family, but there are also important environmental messages with some of the birds being featured being endangered. I was particularly intrigued by the ancient birds episode which looks at birds like the large flightless cassowaries which seem otherworldly compared with the cardinals and catbirds in my back yard. Interested in more Australian wildlife and nature; you can also check out Martin Clunes: Islands of Australia from Hoopla or the PBS documentary Australia featuring koalas, kangaroos and other intriguing creatures who call the land of OZ home from Kanopy.

If you are interested in bird watching you might be interested in the New York Times Birding Project. Hoboken residents have free access to the New York Times online. Simply email the the reference department with your library card.

Written by:
Aimee Harris
Information and Digital Services Manager

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Looking for a New Hobby for the New Year?: Birdwatching

23 Dec

The pandemic has changed us in a lot of ways. Some of us have become aware of the things we took for granted, some of us have experienced a great shift in our priorities, many of us have gone through great grief and anxiety. This period has been very unsettling for me, but one positive thing it brought me has been a new appreciation for nature. 

When we began quarantining way back in March, I began paying more attention to what was out my window. I noticed birds that I had never seen before. Where had they come from? How come I had never noticed them before? Suddenly, I found myself interested in birdwatching. 

When you get a new hobby, you often get obsessed with finding new information on the subject, and the library has a ton of resources for this pursuit in particular! 

On Kanopy, Birders: The Central Park Effect is a great look into activity of birdwatching. Kanopy also has a very informative series entitled The National Geographic Guide to Birding in North America, which is part of The Great Courses. This means you won’t spend any credits watching videos from this series! 

The Bird Watching Answer Book, available on eBCCLS, is a great resource if you’re starting out with backyard birds and feeders. Then, hop onto Hoopla for an enormous variety of resources! A few titles you can check out from Hoopla include The Birds of New Jersey, The Warbler Guide, Birdsong for the Seasons, Identifying Birds of Prey, and that’s just the beginning of it! The Hoboken Library also carries the Sibley Field Guide to Birds of Eastern North America, which is a wonderfully illustrated and enlightening field guide. 

Birding has really helped me get my mind off of these stressful times and it has made me feel more connected to our planet than ever before. If you want to give it a try, a lack of resources is no excuse. The library’s got you covered! 

Written by:
Sam Evaristo
Circulation Assistant, Grand Street Branch

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