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Falcon
Falcon | Helen Macdonald
7 posts | 2 read | 12 to read
Before best-selling author Helen Macdonald told the story of the goshawk in H Is for Hawk, she told the story of the falcon, in a cultural history of the masterful creature that can cut the sky in two with the perfectly aerodynamic profile of a raindrop, as she so incisively puts it. In talon-sharp prose she explores the spell the falcon has had over her and, by extension, all of us, whether weve seen them through binoculars, framed on gallery walls, versified by poets, flown as hunting birds, through Manhattan windows, sewn on flags, stamped on badges, or winnowing through the clouds over abandoned arctic radar stations. Macdonald dives through centuries and careens around the globe to tell the story of the falcon as it has flown in the wild skies of the natural world and those of our imagination. Mixing history, myth, and legend, she explores the long history of the sport of falconry in many human culturesfrom Japan to Abu Dhabi to Oxford; she analyzes the falcons talismanic power as a symbol in art, politics, and business; and she addresses the ways we have both endangered and protected it. Along the way we discover how falcons were mobilized in secret military projects; their links with espionage, the Third Reich, the Holy Roman Empire, and space programs; and how they have figured in countless stories of heroism and, of course, the erotic. Best of all, Macdonald has given us something fresh: a new introduction that draws on all her experience to even further invigorate her cherished subject. The result is a deeply informed book written with the same astonishing lyrical grace that has captivated readers and had everyone talking about this writer-cum-falconer.
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Lylah
Falcon | Helen Macdonald
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Fancy blue tea in front of some books I got for my birthday! 🦋🐳

review
Lindy
Falcon | Helen Macdonald
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Pickpick

All kinds of fascinating stuff about falcons: natural history, mythology, species conservation in the era following Silent Spring, hawking as a sport, and other human-raptor interactions around the world. The author also wrote H Is for Hawk; she knows her stuff! Macdonald narrates her own work and her voice is lovely. I enjoyed this #audiobook so much that I plan to listen to it again soon.

saresmoore This sounds like it‘ll be a nice accompaniment for my outdoor walks! 6y
wordzie 😎 ❤ birds 6y
JazzFeathers Sounds so interesting! 6y
46 likes5 stack adds3 comments
quote
Lindy
Falcon | Helen Macdonald
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Falconry has a vibrant present. In some countries, it‘s part of everyday life. Falcons are carried in local marketplaces and malls to tame them in the United Arab Emirates.
(Internet photo)

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Lindy
Falcon | Helen Macdonald
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Falcons can excrete uric acid 3,000 times more concentrated than their blood levels. That‘s acidic enough to etch steel.

(Internet image: Picasso‘s La piseuse)

saresmoore 1. You are killing it with the striking images today. 2. This book sounds both fascinating and beautiful. 6y
gradcat It really is a great image, ditto @saresmoore 6y
Lindy @saresmoore @gradcat Ha! Thanks, both of you. I sent a postcard of this painting to a friend and was surprised by how much she loved it. Pissing is a basic function, surrounded by shame and secrecy. 6y
44 likes2 stack adds3 comments
quote
Lindy
Falcon | Helen Macdonald
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When fixing their eyes on an object, falcons characteristically bob their heads up and down several times. In so doing, they are triangulating the object, using motion parallax to ascertain distance. Their visual acuity is astonishing. A kestrel can resolve a 2 mm insect at 18 m away.

(Internet photo. Sculpture by Ibrahim Koch, Turkey.)

saresmoore This picture baffled me for several seconds! Ah, perspective. 6y
gradcat Great pic & interesting info! 6y
Lindy @saresmoore @gradcat I‘m only an hour into this audiobook and it‘s mesmerizing. I keep rewinding to catch things, even though I‘m listening at single speed. I already plan to listen a second time, because it‘s so jam packed with interesting stuff. 6y
Redwritinghood Cool fact, but that sculpture is terrifying! 😂😂 6y
Lindy @Redwritinghood Not a relaxing sight for anyone with entomophobia. 😉 6y
48 likes1 stack add5 comments
blurb
Kat_Howard
Falcon | Helen Macdonald

H IS FOR HAWK is one of my all-time favorite books, so of course I picked this up. It's completely fascinating so far.

Shemac77 I loved H is for Hawk too! 8y
Shemac77 I'll have to look for this one! 8y
ApoptyGina69 I know! I was like, "who cares about a hawk?" And then I realized, "duh! I do-a lot!!" Adding this one now. Thank you! 8y
34 likes3 stack adds3 comments
blurb
colindickey
Falcon | Helen Macdonald
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"All encounters with falcons are in a strong sense encounters with ourselves--whether the falcons are real or imaginary, whether seen through binoculars, framed on gallery walls, versified by poets, flown as hunting birds, spotted through Manhattan windows, sewn on flags, stamped on badges, or seen winnowing through the clouds over abandoned arctic radar stations."

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