The Big Year: A Tale of Man, Nature, and Fowl Obsession

Stefan Fatsis author of Word Freak: Heartbreak, Triumph, Genius, and Obsession in the World of Competitive Scrabble Players Red-breasted nuthatches! Himalayan snowcocks! Spotted woodpeckers! Nutting's flycatchers! The Big Year is the Gumball Rally of birding -- a rollicking, nonstop, trans-continental adventure. Mark Obmascik brings the doggedness of an investigative reporter, the grace of an accomplished storyteller, and the compassion of a fellow-traveling obsessive to this alluring quest for avian supremacy.

David Allen Sibley author of The Sibley Guide to Birds Mark Obmascik understands birders, and in this book he has ventured bravely into the fringes of the hobby to report on a sort of extreme birding: the big year. It's the best and the worst of birding in one grueling yearlong contest, and you have to admire the rare passion and dedication that a big year attempt requires. The rest of us must be content with daydreaming about it, and this book will undoubtedly be the source of many daydreams.

Jeff Corwin wildlife biologist, executive producer and host of Animal Planet's The Jeff Corwin ExperienceThe Big Year is big fun. A rollicking, feather-ruffler of a read, this uproarious adventure of three men who flew over the cuckoo's nest in their search for avian glory will have you cawing with laughter.

Kenn Kaufman author of Kaufman Focus Guides: Birds of North America If you didn't think that a bird book could be a gripping page-turner, The Big Year will blow you away. Mark Obmascik has captured the best and the worst of birding, the euphoria and insanity of bird-chasing as an extreme sport, in this vivid, well-crafted epic.

T. R. Reid Washington Post's Rocky Mountain Bureau Chief, regular commentator on National Public Radio's Morning Edition, and author of Confucius Lives Next Door Here's a rare species: a book on birdwatching that turns out to be charming, engrossing, and educational even for people who can't tell a mudhen from a magpie. It was so much fun, I didn't want the big year to end. When it did, there was only one thing to say: "Where'd I put those binoculars?"