ODD BIRDS & FAT CATS (An Urban Bestiary), beautiful gift item indeed

ODD BIRDS & FAT CATS (An Urban Bestiary)
Peter Wortsman (illus. Aurélie Bernard Wortsman)
Turtle Point Press (non-affiliate Bookshop.org link)
$23.00 hardcover, available now

Rating: 5* of five

The Publisher Says: Ravens in Berlin . . . Parakeets in Brooklyn . . . Chickens in Tel Aviv . . . Spiders in Cognac. City creatures spark the imagination and intellect in words and art by this father-daughter team.

Odd Birds & Fat Cats (An Urban Bestiary) is an illustrated collection of brief observations on city creatures. Inspired by the tradition of the medieval bestiary, bestiarum vocabulum, a 12th-century bestselling genre that chronicled animals and beings both real and fantastical, the book features pithy impressions of birds and animals that delight, confound, and edify, written by Peter Wortsman, coupled with detailed naturalist artwork by his daughter, Aurélie Bernard Wortsman.

Featured creatures include:

Pigeons: “When, finally, it takes flight . . . this asphalt-colored bird is like a piece of the pavement which by some fluke of gravity broke loose and is foolishly falling upward by mistake."

Seagulls: “Fallen splinters of eternity, they hang overhead with the equanimity and mild disdain of angels in a medieval altarpiece, and unlike pigeons, refuse any direct contact with man."

Ants: “Micro-managers in three-piece bodies, ants parody human antics to a tee. Or is it the other way around?"

Dust mites: “Every time you scratch yourself or comb your hair, you are feeding the tiny intruders with the detritus of self."

With four-color images throughout, printed in a beautiful hardbound edition, this one-of-a-kind volume will please the discerning animal lover, traveler, art lover, iconoclast, and literati on your gift list—and, of course, also you!

I RECEIVED A DRC FROM THE PUBLISHER VIA EDELWEISS+. THANK YOU.

My Review: The world is changing around us at huge speed. A bestiary such as this will stand as a record as change accelerates, making these creatures either obsolete or altered. It's a great gift item for your environmentalist giftee, of any age after fourteen. It's gorgeous, informative, not in the least bit dry; this is a gift item pure and simple.

contents page

In studying the urban world, the father/daughter team decided we should feature as much as the other animals..after all no us, no cities:

Of course, the creatures around us are as prominent as they are to our quotidian notice...maybe moreso:

And, I must say, I found the humor, and the observations of beauty, both equally delightful as I browsed the book.

Something for a discerning special late teen, young adult, or friend who loves to look at te world through beautiful glasses.