"This book was written to supply a definite need. Its preparation was undertaken at the urgent request of booksellers and others who have felt the lack of a satisfactory medium of introduction to bird life for little children. As such, and in no sense whatever as a competitor with the many excellent books on this subject, but rather to supplement these, this volume has been written. Its primary purpose is to interest the little child in, and to make him acquainted with, those feathered friends he is most likely to see. ...
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"This book was written to supply a definite need. Its preparation was undertaken at the urgent request of booksellers and others who have felt the lack of a satisfactory medium of introduction to bird life for little children. As such, and in no sense whatever as a competitor with the many excellent books on this subject, but rather to supplement these, this volume has been written. Its primary purpose is to interest the little child in, and to make him acquainted with, those feathered friends he is most likely to see. Because there is no method of approach to the child mind equal to the story, this method of conveying information has been adopted. So far as I am aware the book is unique in this respect. In its preparation an earnest effort has been made to present as far as possible the important facts regarding the appearance, habits and characteristics of our feathered neighbors. It is intended to be at once a story book and an authoritative handbook. While it is intended for little children, it is hoped that children of larger growth may find in it much of both interest and helpfulness. Mr. Louis Agassiz Fuertes, artist and naturalist, has marvelously supplemented such value as may be in the text by his wonderful drawings in full color. They were made especially for this volume and are so accurate, so true to life, that study of them will enable any one to identify the species shown. I am greatly indebted to Mr. Fuertes for his cooperation in the endeavor to make this book of real assistance to the beginner in the study of our native birds. It is offered to the reader without apologies of any sort. It was written as a labor of love-love for little children and love for the birds. Ifas a result of it even a few children are led to a keener interest in and better understanding of our feathered friends, its purpose will have been accomplished."-From the Preface.
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Add this copy of Burgess Bird Book for Children to cart. $145.33, good condition, Sold by Bonita rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Newport Coast, CA, UNITED STATES, published 2009 by Amereon Ltd.
The Burgess Bird Book for Children is a classic that is now out of print, at least in hardcover anyway. You can't get a new hardcover of this book unless you want to pay in the hundreds for a used copy.
However, the Press at Toad Hall has reissued this work in what they call a "hardcover". Don't be fooled.
Their printing quality is worse than a paperback. The back binding is a piece of tape holding the pages together with two very thin but rather solid boards for the front and back cover. There is even a built in bookmark, but it is merely taped to the last page of the book. This is the lowest quality bookmaking I have EVER seen. A paperback version would look much nicer than the Press at Toad Halls quality. Very dissappointed - in fact I already donated this low quality book to a hospital.
languagejunkie
Apr 12, 2009
Make sure your book has color pictures!
The stories in this book are lively and cute, but be aware that there are two different versions of this book: one with color illustrations and one with black-and-white. How is my daughter supposed to notice the "bright red plumage" or the "yellow body and brown head" when every single one of her pictures is either solid black or a combination of black-and-white? Not all of these birds live in our area and with these dark illustrations, it is impossible to see what these non-local birds are supposed to look like. This forces me to hunt around for pictures elsewhere, taking up valuable time that could be used for other worthwhile activities. I am extremely disappointed that I was not aware of this "minor" discrepency in the versions available and would recommend this book in its COLOR format only. It's worth the extra couple of dollars.
momof4supersons
May 7, 2007
Great book!
Interesting stories. Draws the reader in. My sons have learned so much about the various birds and are becoming avid birdwatchers. Just reading the chapter you learn about the habitat, migration pattern and appearance of whichever bird Peter Rabbit is talking too. Lots of fun for adults who are fowl challenged as well.
