Pigeons: The Fascinating Saga of the World's Most Revered and Reviled Bird Paperback – October 10, 2007

Having developed a deep dislike for pigeons after repeated close encounters with wings and droppings on the sidewalks of San Francisco, I picked up "Pigeons" on a whim, hoping that trading disdain for respect might prevent me from a recurring impulse to punt a bird into traffic. I no longer want to kick a pigeon -- and I'm surely anthropomorphising, but it seems the birds have newfound respect for my space as well; rather, my violent urge has been replaced with a desire to lure a few through my front door so I can try the pot pie recipe on page 219.Author Andrew Blechman has gone to great pains to cover seemingly every facet of the pigeon: racing, hunting, military service, beauty shows, breeding, pigeon mythology and pigeon eradication. Along the way we meet Charles Darwin, B.F. Skinner, Ernest Hemingway, Woody Allen, Paris Hilton, Mike Tyson (well, almost) and a type of pigeon called Naked Neck, which originated in Transylvania and through some mutation possesses no feathers between its chin and breastbone.One thing is clear here; though ordinary city-dwelling pigeons are mainly gray in color, there are no gray areas when it comes to the perception of these critters, viewed both as "rats with wings" and goddesses, and little in between. When Blechman discusses pigeon racing, I am reminded of children's beauty pageants and the sexually repressed collectors in "Orchid Thief;" cheating, obsession and murderous intentions saturate all three activities. Pigeon racing might be no more bizarre than dressing your 5-year-old like a Vegas showgirl, but it's the only undertaking in which the subject is, to borrow the book's phrasing, so reviled by those not involved, yet so revered by its participants -- even at the expense of healthy human relations. It's akin to conducting a bedbug bed-bleeding contest. What makes it even stranger is we find that the dove of peace used to mark weddings, or messenger doves credited with saving a number of American soldiers' lives during World War II, is basically the same as a sweatsock pigeon pecking at a burrito wrapper while hopping on its remaining leg in a puddle of urine somewhere downtown right now.

Great price for hardcover book and fast shipping too!

I have to admit to a fondness for pigeons. While I don't feed them, I do keep a birdbath that the pigeons, the pigeons called doves, and lots of other birds use frequently. Pigeons are actually quite fun to watch and quite beautiful, so I wanted to learn more.Be careful of what you wish for. It took me quite a long time to read this book because I couldn't handle more than a little at a time. It's incomprehensible what we've done to this maligned bird. Even those who profess to love them, but breed for their own visions of beauty and uniqueness, even those who race them, can be incredibly cruel.Some of the fancy breeds have been so modified they can't eat normally or feed their babies, the babes can't even peck their ways out of their shells. “They certainly wouldn't survive in the wild, but then again, they're not bred to live in the wild. They're bred to be pretty to look at.” There are pigeons that roll while flying. One of the fanciers, when asked why they roll, says, “Because they're retarded, that's why. If it was a kid, you'd put a helmet on him and stick him in a padded room.”There are the pigeon shoots, and the feral pigeons baited and netted to provide the shoots. The organizer of one of the shoots states, “It's not that we hate pigeons. We treat them well...until they get shot.” Right. And if one of the shot pigeons manages to live, it get stuffed in a garbage bag with the dead ones. The ones that fly farther are left to die a slower death.These cruel acts involve a fewer number of birds than plain old urban warfare on them. The favored method seems to be poisoning them, and as a side effect, poison non-targeted creatures. It is only a short term semi-solution to the problem, and there are humane ways of controlling the pigeon population when it gets out of hand. But that isn't profitable for those whose wages depend on poisoning.I've only touched on what all this informative book contains, and I do recommend reading it. But if you have a soul, some of it will make you wonder about humanity.

If you love birds, this book is very interesting, well written… by the end of the book one really feels sorry for pigeons. People really can be unkind to nature. Be aware if a restaurant offers squab, squab is baby pigeon….

The book was quite informative for us. My wife and I, as a hobby while working full time, saved sick & injured birds for 30 years. We had a federal and state license to do so. We did a lot of our work with birds like crows, pigeons, sparrows and starlings. My wife worked in an animal hospital that specialized in birds. I discovered pigeons, one on one, were affecionate, sweet and did not bite like parrots and other hooked billed birds. I had one male pigeon who would sit on my shoulder when I would take a shower and stick his body under the shower and if I took a nap he was right there to cuddle up next to me. We've had Labrador Retrievers and everybody got along, even with the two rescue cats we had. Pigeons will get into water to clean themselves even in colder weather. This pigeon I spoke of lived to 23 and died of testicular cancer. I sure missed him and was quite attached to that little guy.