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Pigeons: the fascinating saga of the world's most revered and reviled bird

Book Cover
Average Rating
Publisher:
Grove Atlantic
Pub. Date:
2007
Language:
English
Accelerated Reader:
IL: UG - BL: 7.7 - AR Pts: 11
Description
A "quirky, endlessly entertaining" look at the surprising history of the pigeon (Simon Winchester).

Domesticated since the dawn of man, pigeons have been used as crucial communicators in war by every major historical superpower from ancient Egypt to the United States and are credited with saving thousands of lives. They have been worshipped as fertility goddesses and revered as symbols of peace. Charles Darwin relied heavily on pigeons to help formulate and support his theory of evolution. Yet today they are reviled as "rats with wings."

To research this lively history of the humble pigeon, the author traveled across the United States and Europe to meet with pigeon fanciers and pigeon haters in a quest to find out how we came to misunderstand one of mankind's most helpful and steadfast companions. Pigeons captures a Brooklyn man's quest to win the Main Event (the pigeon world's equivalent of the Kentucky Derby), as well as a convention dedicated to breeding the perfect bird. The author participates in a live pigeon shoot where entrants pay $150; he tracks down Mike Tyson, the nation's most famous pigeon lover; he spends time with Queen Elizabeth's Royal Pigeon Handler; and he sheds light on a radical "pro-pigeon underground" in New York City. In Pigeons, Andrew D. Blechman reveals for the first time the remarkable story behind this seemingly unremarkable bird.

"A quick and thoroughly entertaining read, Pigeons will leave readers chuckling at the quirky characters and pondering surprising pigeon facts." —Audubon Magazine

"Manages to illuminate not merely the ostensible subject of the book, but also something of the endearing, repellent, heroic, and dastardly nature of that most bizarre of breeds, Homo sapiens." —Salon.com
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Contributors:
ISBN:
9780802118349
9781555846008
Accelerated Reader:
UG
Level 7.7, 11 Points
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Grouping Information

Grouped Work ID74885a0e-8401-7b70-8801-eb71c024e175
Grouping Titlepigeons the fascinating saga of the worlds most revered and reviled bird
Grouping Authorandrew d blechman
Grouping Categorybook
Grouping LanguageEnglish (eng)
Last Grouping Update2023-05-27 02:08:35AM
Last Indexed2023-05-27 02:26:17AM

Solr Fields

accelerated_reader_interest_level
UG
accelerated_reader_point_value
11
accelerated_reader_reading_level
7.7
author
Blechman, Andrew D.
author2-role
hoopla digital
author_display
Blechman, Andrew D.
display_description
A "quirky, endlessly entertaining" look at the surprising history of the pigeon (Simon Winchester).

Domesticated since the dawn of man, pigeons have been used as crucial communicators in war by every major historical superpower from ancient Egypt to the United States and are credited with saving thousands of lives. They have been worshipped as fertility goddesses and revered as symbols of peace. Charles Darwin relied heavily on pigeons to help formulate and support his theory of evolution. Yet today they are reviled as "rats with wings."

To research this lively history of the humble pigeon, the author traveled across the United States and Europe to meet with pigeon fanciers and pigeon haters in a quest to find out how we came to misunderstand one of mankind's most helpful and steadfast companions. Pigeons captures a Brooklyn man's quest to win the Main Event (the pigeon world's equivalent of the Kentucky Derby), as well as a convention dedicated to breeding the perfect bird. The author participates in a live pigeon shoot where entrants pay $150; he tracks down Mike Tyson, the nation's most famous pigeon lover; he spends time with Queen Elizabeth's Royal Pigeon Handler; and he sheds light on a radical "pro-pigeon underground" in New York City. In Pigeons, Andrew D. Blechman reveals for the first time the remarkable story behind this seemingly unremarkable bird.

"A quick and thoroughly entertaining read, Pigeons will leave readers chuckling at the quirky characters and pondering surprising pigeon facts." —Audubon Magazine

"Manages to illuminate not merely the ostensible subject of the book, but also something of the endearing, repellent, heroic, and dastardly nature of that most bizarre of breeds, Homo sapiens." —Salon.com
format_catalog
eBook
format_category_catalog
eBook
id
74885a0e-8401-7b70-8801-eb71c024e175
isbn
9780802118349
9781555846008
last_indexed
2023-05-27T09:26:17.285Z
lexile_score
-1
literary_form
Non Fiction
literary_form_full
Non Fiction
primary_isbn
9780802118349
publishDate
2006
2007
publisher
Grove Atlantic
Grove Press
recordtype
grouped_work
subject_facet
Electronic books
Pigeons
title_display
Pigeons : the fascinating saga of the world's most revered and reviled bird
title_full
Pigeons : the fascinating saga of the world's most revered and reviled bird / Andrew D. Blechman
Pigeons : the fascinating saga of the world's most revered and reviled bird [electronic resource] / Andrew D. Blechman
Pigeons The Fascinating Saga of the World's Most Revered and Reviled Bird
title_short
Pigeons
title_sub
the fascinating saga of the world's most revered and reviled bird
topic_facet
Electronic books
History
Nature
Nonfiction
Pigeons

Solr Details Tables

item_details

Bib IdItem IdShelf LocCall NumFormatFormat CategoryNum CopiesIs Order ItemIs eContenteContent SourceeContent URLDetailed StatusLast CheckinLocation
hoopla:MWT12212053Online Hoopla CollectionOnline HooplaeBookeBook1falsetrueHooplahttps://www.hoopladigital.com/title/12212053?utm_source=MARCAvailable Online
overdrive:688871bc-5cef-4291-86a9-c96a17ecfd02-2Online OverDrive CollectionOnline OverDriveeBookeBook1falsetrueOverDriveAvailable Online

record_details

Bib IdFormatFormat CategoryEditionLanguagePublisherPublication DatePhysical DescriptionAbridged
ils:.b17993179BookBooksEnglishGrove Pressc2006239 p. ; 24 cm.
hoopla:MWT12212053eBookeBookEnglishGrove Atlantic20071 online resource
overdrive:688871bc-5cef-4291-86a9-c96a17ecfd02eBookeBookEnglishGrove Atlantic2007

scoping_details_catalog

Bib IdItem IdGrouped StatusStatusLocally OwnedAvailableHoldableBookableIn Library Use OnlyLibrary OwnedHoldable PTypesBookable PTypesLocal Url
hoopla:MWT12212053Available OnlineAvailable Onlinefalsetruefalsefalsefalsefalse
overdrive:688871bc-5cef-4291-86a9-c96a17ecfd02-2Available OnlineAvailable Onlinefalsetruetruefalsefalsefalse