Corvus (eBook)

A unique memoir about sharing domestic life with wild birds. Beautifully written and illustrated, Corvus combines natural and cultural history with a personal story told with wit, lyricism and affection.
Esther Woolfson's daughter rescued Chicken, a fledgling rook sixteen years ago. Amazed by their intelligence and personalities, Woolfson became fascinated by corvids. Chicken, Spike the magpie, and, most recently, Ziki the Crow, have formed sibling relationships with Woolfson's daughters and with each other, cached food in her kitchen wall and laid eggs in her living room, called to her at dawn, and perched companionably on her knee of an evening, and taught her more than she ever expected about birds and about human beings. Woolfson's account of her experiences is funny, touching and beautifully written, and gives fascinating insights into the closeness human beings can achieve with wild creatures.

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One spring, many years ago, Esther Woolfson's daughter rescued a fledgling rook. That rook, named Chicken, quickly established herself as part of the family, and other birds, including an irascible cockatiel and a depressive parrot, soon followed. But it was the corvids - members of the crow family - who amazed Woolfson with their personality and their capacity for affection. This classic blend of memoir and natural history combines the author's fascination with all things avian, from the mechanics of flight to the science of birdsong, with her funny, tender stories of life among the birds.