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Liepman Literary Agency
Marc Koralnik
Original language
English
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http://www.jenniferackermanautho …

THE GENIUS OF BIRDS

Jennifer Ackerman

In THE GENIUS OF BIRDS, Jennifer Ackerman turns the long time assumption of the primitive bird brain on its head. Far more intelligent than we ever imagined, Ackerman delivers a breath of knowledge and revolutionary new research in high lyrical style.
THIS BOOK WILL EXPLORE the new view of birds as sophisticated “thinkers,” cunning, playful, witty, greedy, cranky, joyful, competitive. It will look at intelligent bird behavior right before our eyes, easily observed in our own surroundings, and bring to it the latest science from lab and field. In a compelling “natural” narrative with a subtle seasonal flow, it will trace the life cycle of a bird from brainy hatchling born in spring to wizened old bird in winter, probing smart behavior from chick to fledgling to juvenile (with frequent play and delinquency), from young adulthood to sexual maturity to old age—learning to call and sing, playing, feeding, making and using tools, exercising extraordinary memory feats, navigating, migrating, courting, mating, and (for the very successful) growing old. Do birds get smarter over time? Why are some species more “eggheaded” than others? Why do urban birds have bigger brains? And what does bird intelligence have to say about our own? Written in a lyrical and highly informative style in the spirit of Peter Matthiessen—with lighthearted and entertaining descriptions of birds, their behavior, and their world—this book will be packed with interesting new science that will appeal to a broad range of readers, including sophisticated bird lovers, nature enthusiasts, and anyone interested in the brain, behavior, or the nature of intelligence. JENNIFER ACKERMAN is an award-winning writer who has written about science and nature for the past 25 years. She is the author of six books, and her writing has appeared in The New York Times Magazine, Scientific American, National Geographic, Natural History, Nature Conservancy, the National Geographic “Great Migrations” films, and many other publications and venues. Ackerman's honors include a National Endowment for the Arts Literature Fellowship in Nonfiction, a year-long fellowship from the Bunting Institute of Radcliffe College, a grant from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, and fellowships from the Tisch College of Tufts University, Brown College of the University of Virginia, and the Delaware State Arts Council.
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Published 2016-04-01 by Penguin Press

Comments

Penguin Press

“[A] lovely, celebratory survey you feel her wonderment, faintly recognizing another, strange intelligence covertly operating in a world we presume to be ours: the one pecking at our muffin crumbs, the quick specks in the sky.”

Tanapaev Publishers

"Ackerman writes with a light but assured touch, her prose rich in fact but economical in delivering it. Fans of birds in all their diversity will want to read this one." Read more...

Business Weekly Publications

Yilin Press

Ariel/Planeta

“Ackerman makes a passionate case for ‘the genius of birds.'”

Los Angeles Times Bestseller list for Hardcover Nonfiction at #17

“A gloriously provocative and highly entertaining book.“

Prometheus

Jennifer Ackerman's richly researched new book, “The Genius of Birds,” provides engrossing evidence that will have readers looking at birds in a completely new way. Read more...

Her book contains a startling fact of avian ability every few pages but it adds up to rather more than an appreciation of birds' powers. Read more...

“I love birds; always have. The only thing better than love is love plus deep appreciation. The Genius of Birds is a journey of deep appreciation for the beautiful geniuses all around us, in our gardens, sharing our air, and sharing more of our minds than we might have expected.” —Carl Safina, author of Beyond Words: What Animals Think and Feel

"In addition to providing engaging descriptions of bird behavior, Ackerman addresses scientific debates, such as about whether birds' ability to solve puzzles necessarily indicates insight and a grasp of cause and effect." Read more...

Monthly Animal Bestseller list: June at #3 Read more...

Scribe

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Constable & Robinson