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A review by tombuoni
To See Every Bird on Earth: A Father, a Son, and a Lifelong Obsession by Dan Koeppel
5.0
Unexpectedly poignant book about the obsessions of birding, travel, dreams and accomplishments, all told through the prism of personal memoir/biography from a man whose father who saw over 7,000 birds. The structure used a specifically researched focus (birding) with related interludes on wide-ranging topics with a personal and philosophical touches woven throughout. This approach really worked well - reminiscent of similar styles on “An Odyssey” by Daniel Mendelsohn and “On Trails” by Robert Moor. It also introduced some new terms for me - “Listers”, “Splitters”, and “Lumpers”. Some passages:
“It seems obvious, but you can’t count a lot of birds if there aren’t a lot of birds. What makes that an interesting thought is that the number of birds on Earth has been growing- rapidly. When Dad first started birding, there were believe to be about 8,600 known species. Today there are closer to ten thousand - and in a decade or two, some ornithologists believe that number could double, or even triple.”
“The summer before classes were to begin, I think, was the last chance Dad had as a young man to take a path of his own choosing. With a copy of Kerouac’s “On the Road” in his pocket and Peterson’s “A Field Guide to Western Birds” on the passenger seat, Dad signed up with a drive-away car transporter company and traveled cross-country.”
“Dad told me that he had to accept responsibility. Most of us have met that moment where we suddenly realize the things that we once sought are falling into a different order of priorities. Sometimes we have to find a way to change our lives, to re-embrace that which seems to be vanishing. Other times we simply abandon our dreams.”
“In retrospect, I’m not so sure birding’s popularity rose because it cured any inherent illness in the modern world. Rather it seems to be that listing is one of the most earth-friendly examples of manifest destiny - it doesn’t solve the problems of modern life, it brings a measure of control to them. Yes, birding was (and is) an antidote, but it’s efficacy comes not by providing a sylvan counterbalance to that uncertainty, but by adding to a chaotic world an element of power and control. Counting birds is an assertive way for the average person to gain mastery over nature.”
“It seems obvious, but you can’t count a lot of birds if there aren’t a lot of birds. What makes that an interesting thought is that the number of birds on Earth has been growing- rapidly. When Dad first started birding, there were believe to be about 8,600 known species. Today there are closer to ten thousand - and in a decade or two, some ornithologists believe that number could double, or even triple.”
“The summer before classes were to begin, I think, was the last chance Dad had as a young man to take a path of his own choosing. With a copy of Kerouac’s “On the Road” in his pocket and Peterson’s “A Field Guide to Western Birds” on the passenger seat, Dad signed up with a drive-away car transporter company and traveled cross-country.”
“Dad told me that he had to accept responsibility. Most of us have met that moment where we suddenly realize the things that we once sought are falling into a different order of priorities. Sometimes we have to find a way to change our lives, to re-embrace that which seems to be vanishing. Other times we simply abandon our dreams.”
“In retrospect, I’m not so sure birding’s popularity rose because it cured any inherent illness in the modern world. Rather it seems to be that listing is one of the most earth-friendly examples of manifest destiny - it doesn’t solve the problems of modern life, it brings a measure of control to them. Yes, birding was (and is) an antidote, but it’s efficacy comes not by providing a sylvan counterbalance to that uncertainty, but by adding to a chaotic world an element of power and control. Counting birds is an assertive way for the average person to gain mastery over nature.”