THE BIG BOOK OF BIRDS

Zommer surveys various bird species from around the world in
this oversized (almost 14 inches tall tall) volume.

While exuberantly presented, the information is not
uniformly expressed from bird to bird, which in the best cases will lead
readers to seek out additional information and in the worst cases will lead to
frustration. For example, on spreads that feature multiple species, the birds
are not labeled. This happens again later when the author presents facts about
eggs: Readers learn about camouflaged eggs, but the specific eggs are not
identified, making further study extremely difficult. Other facts are
misleading: A spread on “city birds” informs readers that “peregrine falcons
nest on skyscrapers in New York City”—but they also nest in other large cities.
In a sexist note, a peahen is identified as “unlucky” because she “has drab
brown feathers” instead of flashy ones like the peacock’s. Illustrations are
colorful and mostly identifiable but stylized; Zommer depicts his birds with
both eyes visible at all times, even when the bird is in profile. The primary
audience for the book appears to be British, as some spreads focus on European
birds over their North American counterparts, such as the mute swan versus the trumpeter
swan and the European robin versus the American robin. The backmatter, a seven-word
glossary and an index, doesn’t provide readers with much support.

Pretty but insubstantial. (Nonfiction. 8-12)