Written in a vivacious strain by a real bird lover... {John Burroughs on Neltje Blanchan's Bird Neighbors}

{HISTORY}

Tender, insightful and full of joy, when Bird Neighbors was first published in 1897, birding enthusiasts and book critics alike marveled at the photographs, the colorful illustrations, the technical specifications, and the poetic phrasing that Neltje Blanchan used to describe the backyard birds that frequented the northeastern American landscape. Let's look at a few examples of how she gives personality to these common birds in rather uncommon ways...

•  (On the American Robin} Whether lightly tripping over the lawn after the "early worm" or rising with his sharp, quick cry of alarm, when startled to his nest nearby, every motion is decided, alert and free. No pensive hermit of the woods like his cousins, the thrushes, is this joyous vigorous "bird of the morning." Such a presence is inspiring. 
• (On the Chickadee) It fairly overflows with good spirits, and is never more contagiously gay than in a snowstorm. So active, so friendly and cheering, what would the long Northern winters be like without this loveable little neighbor?
• (On the White-Breasted Nuthatch) With more artless inquisitiveness than fear, this lively little acrobat stops his hammering or hatcheting at your approach, and stretching himself out from the tree until it would seem he must fall off, he peers down at you, head downward, straight into your up turned opera glasses. 
• Titmice always see to it that you are not lonely as you walk through the woods.  One might sometimes think his whistle, like a tugboat's, worked by steam.
• No bird of finer color or presence sojourns with us the year round than the blue jay. In a peculiar sense, his is a case of "beauty covering a multitude of sins." 

• (on the American Goldfinch) With plumage so lovely and song so delicious and dreamy...  At your approach, the busy company rises on the wing, and with peculiar, wavy flight, rise and fall through the air, marking each undulation with a cluster of notes, sweet and clear, that come floating downward from the blue ether, where the birds seem to bound along exultant in their motion and song alike. 

Included in each of these flowery and friendly descriptions of 150 garden birds are the technical details too - the Latin names, the dimensions, the physical attributes, the migration range, and the seasonal habitat, but what really makes this book sing (no pun intended) is Neltje's observation of each bird. She pulls quotes and poetry and reference notes from other famous ornithologists, nature writers and literary figures and pairs them with her own keen insight to give readers a complete character sketch of each bird's unique personality. It's a combination that makes for really delightful writing. 

Neltje Blanchan was the pen name for Blanchan De Graff Doubleday (1865-1918), wife of Frank Nelson Doubleday, the founder of the publishing company Doubleday.  A revered nature writer during her lifetime, Blanchan published over ten books on flowers and birds throughout her career. Also involved with the American Red Cross, she died tragically at the age of 52 from apoplexy during a Red Cross mission to China. 

This edition of Bird Neighbors was published in 1922 by Garden City Publishing, four years after her death. The red coverboards contained some staining, and at some point in its midcentury life during the 1950s-1960s era, the book was wrapped in vintage bluebird gift wrap manufactured by Norcross. This new wrapping adds sweet character to a charming book that will delight readers of all ages. 

{SPECIAL FEATURES}

• 1922 edition published by Garden City Publishing 
• 234 pages
• Illustrated with both black and white and color plates throughout
• Individual birds and their descriptions are grouped by color palette
  

{CONDITION}

In lovely antique condition minus the staining on the coverboards (please see photos). The interior pages are clean and bright and the spine is tight with all pages intact. A previous owner's name is written in very faint fountain pen on the inside cover. The impromptu "dust jacket" is fashioned from 1950s-1960s-era gift wrap paper made by Norcross. The dust jacket spine contains handwritten titling on a gold sticker. This paper is not glued or secured to the coverboards in any fashion. Please see photos.

{SIZE}

Measures 8.25" inches (length) x 5.25" inches (width) x 1.25" inches (thickness) and weighs 1.5 lbs.