This is a history book, a novel, a collection of short stories, a series of vignettes, an appreciation of nature, a reporting of detailed field and laboratory research, human-interest stories, and a narration in prose often verging on poetry. It’s an enjoyable read, often thrilling, often depressing, always believable. I think it must contain everything there is to know or say about America’s national bird, its history, its mythology, and its biology.