Our Garden Birds is a delightful illustrated hardback gift book by pop artist (and ornithologist Matt Sewell), who pairs gorgeous art with descriptions of favourite garden birds.
From great tits ‘bossing the other birds around’ to the ‘playful yet shy buoyancy’ of bullfinches and the waxwing ‘like a computer-generated samurai finch’.
You’ll learn about common garden birds like tits, sparrows and finches, blackbirds and less common pied wagtails and redwings, along with migrating hoopoes.
From wood pigeons to ‘martins’ (house martins, swallows, swifts), tiny wrens to dunnocks, the crow family (including blue jays), robins, starlings and a few woodland birds (woodpeckers, owls and birds of prey), this is a wonderful and light-hearted read!
Matt Sewell is an artist and ornithologist who has written several best-selling books on bird and other wildlife. His designs for birds even feature on stamps on Isle of Man.
- If you live with cats, keep them indoors at dusk and dawn, when garden birds are likely feeding.
- Never give garden birds stale or mouldy bread (not buttered bread, as fat can smear on feathers, affecting weatherproofing and insulation).
- Never use brightly-coloured or tin bird houses, as they can overheat and attract predators.
- Read our posts on how to create safe havens for garden birds, and how to stop birds flying into windows
A Book on How to Save Our Garden Birds
Save Our Birds is another wonderful read, again by Matt. Leaving no habitat unexplored around the British Isles, he provides a wealth of practical advice on how to help birds in cities, coastlands, woodlands and farms.
Imagine a garden entirely without birds. Imagine a whole street empty of them; a town with no spring nests or morning birdsong; no swifts or swallows overhead on hot days. Actually, don’t. It’s far too horrible.
Our once insect-rich summers are now a thing of the past, due to pesticides and intensive farming practices.
Matt is passionate about saving our birds, and his writing will make you passionate too:
Put simply, a lot of our birds are endangered, because the UK and Europe just isn’t wild enough anymore. All of our outdoor spaces are owned, managed and pumped full of chemicals to yield as much from the earth as possible.
The Hidden Life of Garden Birds
The Hidden Life of Garden Birds is a beautifully illustrated book to over 50 of our garden birds, glimpsing into their everyday lives. From feeding behaviours to territorial conflict and breeding/nesting, learn how our familiar birds live each day.
Did you know that:
- Woodpeckers can learn simple codes?
- Hooded crows form connections with humans?
- A jay’s call affects a squirrel’s behaviour?
Dominic Couzens is an award-winning nature writer, with over 40 books published. He has regular columns in nature-writing magazines, and also is author of a book on how to save British endangered wildlife
Britain’s Birds is a charming illustrated treasury of 70 of Britain’s beautiful birds. With natural history facts, folklore and literary appearances, the books is a fascinating guide and makes the perfect gift for birders. The book features 40 custom illustrations.
Did you know blackbirds may have originally been white? Or the number of times you hear a cuckoo (determines how many children you’ll have?)
Or woodpeckers have special shock absorbers built into their beaks? Or in 1958, a puffin was blown inland to Bromley, where he knocked a man off his bicycle?
We’ve given human names to familiar garden birds, (Tom Tit, Jenny Wren) because we see them as friends. St Francis of Assisi (the patron saint of animals) reputedly duetted with a nightingale.
While a blackbird was said to have nested in the outstretched hand of Irish hermit St Kevin of Glendalough. Gaining trust of birds was a manifestation of holiness.
Jo Woolf is Writer in Residence at the Royal Scottish Geographical Society. She lives by the sea, where she writes about landscape, wildlife and history.
Explore the Extraordinary World of Birds
Birds: Explore Their Extraordinary World is a gorgeously illustrated hardback (giant) guide to the feathered friends with whom we share our world.
The sky is splendid with all kinds of birds.
- White-winged diuca finches nest high on freezing glaciers
- Peregrine falcons circle skyscrapers in busy cities
- Golden eagles spot prey from miles away
- Secretary birds have a powerful kick, to kill large prey
Did you know that you can tell what time of day an owl hunts, by looking at the colour of its eyes?
This book will astound readers of all ages, learning which birds are the fastest, smartest and most colourful. In this beautiful collection of information on birds everywhere.
Miranda Krestovnikoff studied zoology at Bristol University. After working at BBC Natural History Unit, she became a TV presenter on BBC Coast. She often films underwater (as a qualified scuba diver) and also performs recitals as a accomplished flautist.
Artist Angela Harding is a professional printmaker, whose unique style has become immensely popular in England. She works from a studio in her garden in a Rutland village.
You may recognise her work from illustrating books for several authors including Isabella Tree and Simon Armitage
An Exquisite Book of Magnificent Birds
Magnificent Birds is an exquisite picture book, to inspire. It features incredible birds from around the world, a beautiful gift book that anyone will love to receive.
The author’s stylish lino-cut prints capture the beauty and drama of these wonderful winged creatures, making this a book like no other!
Learn about:
- The bird-of-paradise that performs a colourful courtship dance in the rainforest
- The bar-tailed godwit that flies thousands of miles across the ocean (without stopping)
Narisa Togo has adored birds all her life. Born in Japan, she studied in Tokyo, then took a Masters in Children’s Book Illustration at Cambridge School of Art. She lives in Japan.
Meet 10 Birds from Around the World
Little Robin’s Book of Birds is the perfect book, to introduce young readers to the wonders of our feathered friends. Follow Little Robin on a flight from the city to the jungle, visiting 10 different kinds of birds around the world.
Little Robin wakes up early and flies away from the nest on an adventure, meeting:
- Garden sparrows
- City magpies
- Soaring bald eagles
- Flightless kiwis
- City pigeons
- Graceful swans
- Wild parrots
- Pink Flamingos
- Great grey owls
This is a delightful and colourful treat, ending with a peaceful night-time scene, perfect for winding down at bedtime!
Yuval Zommer graduated from Royal Collage of Art with an MA in Illustration. As an environmentalist, he uses his art to teach children about our planet and the creatures in it.
Skylark (encounters in the wild) is a book by Scotland’s renowned nature writer, who with passion and vision, relives memorable encounters with one of our best-loved creatures, offering intimate insights into their extraordinary lives.
Skylarks are small brown birds (larger than sparrows but smaller than starlings) with streaky brown feathers and a white-sided tail. It’s a close contender with nightingales for the bird world’s most beautiful song!
Watch this bird poisoned on a tussock, awaiting a signal from the wind: a thumbs up, an urging gust. Lift-off is gently inclined and silent.
The transformations from gentle incline to vertical flight (and from silence to song) coincide within a few airborne seconds, a few feet of ascent.
The song is full-throated from the first note, as self-confident as the opening bars of Beethoven’s Fifth or Armstrong’s West End Blues. There is no preamble, no subtle dropped hint of the glories to come.
