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Unseen City
Unseen City: The Majesty of Pigeons, the Discreet Charm of Snails & Other Wonders of the Urban Wilderness | Nathanael Johnson
It all started with Nathanael Johnson's decision to teach his daughter the name of every tree they passed on their walk to day care in San Francisco. This project turned into a quest to discover the secrets of the neighborhood's flora and fauna, and yielded more than names and trivia: Johnson developed a relationship with his nonhuman neighbors. Johnson argues that learning to see the world afresh, like a child, shifts the way we think about nature: Instead of something distant and abstract, nature becomes real--all at once comical, annoying, and beautiful. This shift can add tremendous value to our lives, and it might just be the first step in saving the world. No matter where we live--city, country, oceanside, ormountains--there are wonders that we walk past every day. Unseen City widens the pinhole of our perspective by allowing us to view the world from the high-altitude eyes of a turkey vulture and the distinctly low-altitude eyes of a snail. The narrative allows us to eavesdrop on the comically frenetic life of a squirrel and peer deep into the past with a ginkgo biloba tree. Each of these organisms has something unique to tell us about our neighborhoods and, chapter by chapter, Unseen City takes us on a journey that is part nature lesson and part love letter to the world's urban jungles. With the right perspective, a walk to the subway can be every bit as entrancing as a walk through a national park.
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review
ChaoticMissAdventures
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Mehso-so

There is some sort of saying about how you will always think your kid is smarter and more entertaining then others will think they are. This might be how and why this book fell short for me. I am sure the author was adding whimsy and I am sure naturists with small children will connect more than I did.
Overall the facts are great. The author is even funny but I was bored, which is shocking these little bits of facts are usually my jam.

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ChaoticMissAdventures
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Tagged books gives me a #bookspinbingo First of the month, but my sporadic reading has me close to a couple more.
@thearomaofbooks

TheAromaofBooks Yay bingo!!!! 3y
10 likes1 comment
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ChaoticMissAdventures
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Reading a book about urban critters while watching urban critters on my patio.

Eyelit 🐿 😂 3y
22 likes1 stack add2 comments
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ChaoticMissAdventures
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I thought I was going to finish the tagged this weekend but I kept getting distracted by house busy work. This stack is my stretch goal. Hoping to get a Bingo this week!

Librariana Those darn house chores will get ya! Best of luck on accomplishing your reading goals 😊 My in-laws are currently visiting and I keep hoping there might be a lull in the conversation or an interesting TV show to distract the fellas so my mother-in-law and I can have a quiet moment to get some reading done! 3y
ChaoticMissAdventures @Librariana I love that your MIL and you are on the same page! 3y
17 likes2 comments
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ChaoticMissAdventures
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I am actually LOL'ing.

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ChaoticMissAdventures
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It is going to rain all weekend so here is to food and books and drinking. Up first a book all about pigeons.

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hike.read.repeat
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Pickpick

This book was about urban wildlife. It flourishes, we just have to take the time to notice.

This photo is from one of my lunch break walks. Even though I work downtown in one of the top 10 largest cities in the country, I have a great urban greenspace to escape to.

I see all manner of trees and plants, squirrels, ducks and other water birds, snakes, turtles, butterflies, insects, and birds.

Do you have a favorite urban park or greenspace?

Eggs Beautiful and peaceful 5y
Tamra I know that I take access to open natural spaces for granted. 🍁🌳🌲 5y
28 likes2 comments
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Sarrie
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Pickpick

I immensely enjoyed the structure and message in this. So many people I know, and even I, gloss over what's around us in nature but it can be a beautiful place.

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daniwithtea
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Pickpick

What a delightful read! Part exercise in mindfulness, part appreciation of city living, part nature guide, it‘s definitely prompted me to pay more attention to the “invisible” things as I wander through the city I love so much.

32/100 for the year, U for #litsyatoz, nature for #readharder

22 likes5 stack adds
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daniwithtea
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Baldur just walked into the bed, curled up on my book, and tucked his head under my book light. I...I guess I‘m done reading. #catsoflitsy

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daniwithtea
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Getting a jump on a new book before bed. As a city girl I definitely appreciate the premise, but this line made me laugh out loud.

13 likes1 stack add
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Beholderess
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Wanted to read this book ever since I've heard about it on 99% Invisible #podcast several months ago

#nonfiction

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CAGirlReading
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Really great panel on nature writing and the environment, really bad photo! #baybookfest

82 likes2 stack adds3 comments
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taylorburton
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I'm enjoying the idea of actually taking time this year to open my eyes to the natural world around me thanks to this book, which gives a brief look at a handful of living things that survive in cities. Now let's see if I can take the idea and make it reality!

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Lindy
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Pickpick

"The Majesty of Pigeons, the Discreet Charm of Snails & Other Wonders of the Urban Wilderness." A large-hearted and philosophical look at the biology around us.

Caryl That sounds lovely. 💕 8y
Lindy @Caryl Indeed! I highly recommend it. 8y
26 likes3 stack adds2 comments
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Lindy
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Crows use humans. They drop nuts and shellfish on roads to be smashed by our high-speed steel-belted radial nutcrackers. At certain intersections in Japan, it's common to see crows tossing nuts into the road, waiting for the signal, and then walking with the pedestrians to retrieve their reward.

Lindy Detail, art by Laurie MacFayden, used with permission. http://www.lauriemacfayden.com/art/ 8y
ValerieAndBooks Looks very good! BTW my MIL is a birder and crows are her faves. She says they're the smartest of all birds. 8y
Melkyl That's a beautiful picture. 8y
See All 6 Comments
Riveted_Reader_Melissa Sounds like tool use to me! 8y
Lindy @ValerieAndBooks @Riveted_Reader_Melissa Crows most definitely do use tools. Smart birds. 8y
TeR So clever! 8y
32 likes2 stack adds6 comments
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Lindy
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Crumble some pecan sandies on a notecard with your daughter and eventually you end up grappling with the basic tenets of philosophy. These are the questions that arise if you spend enough time staring at ants.

Riveted_Reader_Melissa True story! 8y
19 likes1 comment
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Lindy
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What's true of other people is also true of places: to know deeply is to love more. To know the secrets of a place, to read it on many levels, and to sense the vastness of the unknown is the key to love.

Lindy This quote resonates. I've lived in this house for 30 years and feel strongly connected to the place. (If you look closely, there's a squirrel acting like a gecko on the stucco wall.) 8y
SusanInTiburon Lovely spot! 8y
MrBook Nice pic! 😊 8y
30 likes3 comments
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Lindy
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In 1883, six years after 68 squirrels were released in Central Park, it had an estimated population of 1,500. Olmsted is the acknowledged father of American landscape architecture, but it's not as well known that he is also the father of city squirrels.

MrBook Loooooooove Central Park. I always attempt to pass through at the Artists' Gate. 8y
32 likes1 stack add1 comment
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Lindy
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Squirrels are much better at burning fat than gaining it. Without even moving, they can produce energy like a pro cyclist powering up into the Pyrenees.

MrBook 😸 8y
32 likes1 comment