Looking for some good advice on how to be a better birder? This book is a lot of fun to read, and provides valuable insights from 50 noted birders such as Kenn Kaufman, David Sibley, and Pete Dunne.

Each contributor has written a short article, about four pages long, imparting one nugget of birding wisdom. Examples include “Bird by Impression,” by Kevin Karlson, “Go Birding in Bad Weather,” by Bill Schmoker, and “Go Birding at Night,” by Ted Floyd.

Some of the articles are tongue-in-cheek. I especially enjoyed “Follow These Rules to See a Mangrove Cuckoo,” by Don & Lilian Stokes. Rule 4 (out of 6) proclaims, “Your chances of finding a Mangrove Cuckoo are increased if you have a non-birder with you, preferably someone who has never even heard of a Mangrove Cuckoo.” While seeing a Mangrove Cuckoo is rather unlikely in Colorado, it’s easy to reapply the “rules” to looking for hard-to-find local birds.

With the summer doldrums over and fall migration underway, this is a great time to brush up on your birding skills. This book is a perfect way to do just that.