Very Funny! An insight into the world of twitching, an anecdotal, humorous and highly personal account of some of the author's most memorable - and amusing - missions to add new birds to his ever-increasing British life-list.

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Product Description

This is a lively, entertaining and informative account of the author's quest over 17 years, and before his 30th birthday, to record 500+ species of the birds found in Britain and Ireland. Complemented by his own photographs and splendid paintings and drawings, he recounts car crashes, stormy sea crossings, plane convoys and even a coastguard rescue during his travels in pursuit of avian rarities. If you thought the simple pleasure of birdwatching - now one of the fastest-growing recreational activities in the world - couldn't be described as 'extreme', you should read this book.

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #157917 in Books
• Published on: 2006-07-01
• Format: Illustrated
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 128 pages

Synopsis
"UK500: Birding in the Fast Lane" is an insight into the world of twitching, an anecdotal, humourous and highly personal account of some of the author's most memorable - and amusing - missions to add new birds to his ever-increasing British life-list. Complemented by his own photographs, paintings and illustrations, he recounts car crashes, stormy sea crossings, plane convoys and even a coastguard rescue, all encountered during his quest to see 500+ bird species in Britain and Ireland, a quest which has spanned 17 years. If you never thought the simple pleasure of bird watching - now one of the fastest-growing recreational activities in the world - could be described as 'extreme', you should read this book.This is a companion volume to Adrian Riley's best selling book "Arrivals and Rivals: A Birding Oddity," reprinted in October 2007 with minor corrections. James Hanlon was born in South London in 1974 and grew up in East Ham, where very early on he developed a keen interest in wildlife, regularly going out bird watching by the age of 10.By his mid-teens the author had established himself as a keen 'twitcher', contributing illustrations and photographs to a number of rare bird publications.

After graduating in Zoology at Bangor University, he went backpacking to New Zealand, Australia and Bali. On returning to the UK, Hanlon resumed his birding activities and soon decided to try to record 500 bird species by his 30th birthday at the end of 2004.

From the Author
I would like to respond to the invaluable feedback readers
have offered through reviews both in the general birding press and on the
Amazon website. Though the book appears to have been well-received there
has been more than one referral to its length, with suggestions it could
have been longer!
When compared to titles such as the Big Year by Mark Obmascik and Arrivals
and Rivals by Adrian Riley yes it is a little on the short side but my
intention when writing this book was to bring together both prose and
artwork - it is as much a gallery for my brush-strokes as it is for my pen.
It is designed to be short so as to hold interest to the end without
compromising quality for the sake of quantity, or scaring off those with
only a passing interest in birds, who have little interest in twitching
themselves. The book is priced a shade higher than those titles already
mentioned as it contains many colour plates, a feature which always boosts
production costs, and inevitably, publication price. My end result is a
work which - I sincerely hope - reaches out to the non-birding community as
much as it does the twitchers and indeed other birders.
I'd like to take this opportunity to thank all those who have written
reviews and offered their opinions - I am delighted that most feedback has
been overwhelmingly positive.

From the Back Cover
This is a lively, entertaining and informative account of the
author's quest over 17 years, and before his 30th birthday, to record 500+
species of the birds found in Britain and Ireland. Complemented by is own
photographs and splended paintings and drawings, he recounts car crashes,
stormy sea crossings, plane convoys and even a coastguard rescue during his
travels in pursuit of avian rarities. If you thought the simple pleasure of
bird watching - now one of the fastest-growing recreational activities in
the world - couldn't ever be described as 'extreme' - you should read this
book.

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Customer Reviews

UK500-Birding in the fast lane.
I read the first page and 48 hours later I'd read the last this book is that good. I'd only ever heard about 'Twitchers' like this and found it hard to believe they really existed, folk who'd charter aircraft on the strength of a pager message or a phone call! The dedication is unquestionable the sanity not so, you decide.

Achieving a goal
You don't have to be a birder to appriciate James's endeavours to record 500+ bird species found in Britain and Ireland. Its as much about travel and being on the road as twitching. In a world made duller by passive conformity James's rebuttal of birdwatching cliches and his pursuit of a goal are a joy to read.

Twitching Frenzy
Hanlon's book is a entertaining and humourous account of his efforts to record 500 plus birds in Britain and Ireland before hitting 30. It is a book for the avid Birdwatcher who will recognise some of their own adventures in their bid to see a rarity. Non Birdwatchers will enjoy the humour and the postcardlike descriptions of places visited. There are excellent drawings and notes from the authors notebooks included. I read it in one sitting enjoying each adventure and as that wound down , I looked forward to the next.