J.K. Rowling in the famous Harry Potter series introduced us to Hedwig, Harry’s loyal and trustworthy owl friend who also serve as his winged postwoman delivering one letter after another to friends and allies.
In the fantasy book series, Guardians of Ga’Hoole (later adapted to an animated film directed by Zack Snyder), author Kathryn Lasky gave us Soren, a barn owl who embarked in an extraordinary journey of discovering the great power of good over evil and knowing one’s self from stories and legends. Lasky turn this series into an owl world as she introduced her readers to different kinds of owls. The movie adaptation was a visual feast of snowy owls, a screech owl, a burrowing owl, a Great Grey Owl, barn owls…the list continues.
In Owls: Our Most Charming Bird, illustrator and avid ornithologist Matt Sewell presents a catalogue of this fascinating bird species that has captured the attention of many ever since Harry Potter came out. Sewell made a guidebook for beginning enthusiasts to learn about the owls’ habitat, natural behaviors, and striking/adorable/funny characteristics (e.g. forgetfulness, sleepy, a little bit grumpy in the case of the Tawny Owl).
Each owl is presented with one spread: a page for its watercolor illustration and another page for its brief description. This is a breath of fresh air and give beginners a head start in getting to know these mysterious and enchanting members of the birding world.
Sewell injects humour in writing this book. Don’t worry Moms and Dads, nothing inappropriate, they’re wholesome and child-friendly so go ahead and get your child a copy if he or she is interested in wildlife. He also sneaked in comments that gives you a perspective of how much he actually knows these winged creatures.
For instance, he wrote on page 20:“To be honest, owls aren’t the brightest of birds; amazing as they are; parrots and crows are much smarter. It’s all in their eyes: those magnificent piercing optics are what make all owls look like they are deep in concentrated scrutiny and steeped in long-lost knowledge.”
My interest in owls started in 2012 when I worked for a social development organization which co-organized the unveiling of new species of hawk owls in the Philippines. A taxonomy review was conducted by British, American, and Filipino scientists and the (re)discovery blew my mind. I got hooked. I wrote the story too as a newspaper correspondent. Read the full story here.
My son, who already has books on camping and birdwatching, immediately took notice of this book the moment he saw me flipping through the pages and screeched: “Hey, that’s Hedwig!”
Sewell’s book is short – and there lies its power. Because… what portion of this population will actually spend a lot time staring at white pages smeared with black ink in the form of letters employing scientific words and technical terms most mortal men can’t even pronounce? A small percentage. Unless you’re an ornithologist, a wildlife biologist, or a serious enthusiast (see my point about being serious about your enthusiasm about owls?), you will surely shun scientific papers and journal articles. This book cuts the chase and makes it easier for mere mortals, like you and me, to understand and appreciate the owling world.
And if you’re the type who actually goes out for birdwatching and takes special interest in owls, you’ll be happy to know that a pictorial checklist is provided for you at the end of the book. The section is called “spotting and jotting” aptly entitled to describe what you need to do when you spot an owl and jot down notes.
In writing Guardians of the Ga’Hoole, Lasky said: “I wanted the Guardians of Ga’Hoole to be the kind of fantasy in which I kept intact as much as possible the owls’ natural behaviors, even though they could talk, make weapons, read, write, create works of art, etc. Therefore, I had to do a ton of research.
I have notebooks filled with my research. One weighs almost five pounds! I had to understand, for example, how owls see and the structure of their eyes.”
If Owl: Our Most Charming Bird was available before Lasky wrote about the guardians, perhaps research work could have been easier, more colorful, and lighter.
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