This hefty, lushly illustrated coffee-table book is a set of more than 300 images curated by Phaidon staff and notable ornithological consultants. It is intended to celebrate the beauty and appeal of birds and illustrate the human relationship with birds and the narrative of the place of birds in art and culture throughout human history. There is an insightful introduction by author and fine artist katrina van Grouw (The Unfeathered Bird, Princeton University Press, 2013) describing how the symbolism of birds has been featured throughout human history, from a fossilized Archaeopteryx to the Bald Eagle symbol of the United States. All forms of imagery are covered in this educational, illustrated encyclopedia, ranging from a petroglyph quail dating from 8000 BC (p. 276) to Doug Bowman’s Twitter logo Twitter Bird (p. 196). The images portray a range of media from physical art such as sculptures and jewelry, detailed oil paintings from 17th and 18th century masters, modern-day photographers, and the evolution of scientific bird art.