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An Ornithologist's Guide to Life
"A collection of short stories that makes it possible to be proud to be human."―Carolyn See, Washington Post Looking at her characters as if through a pair of binoculars, Ann Hood captures the extraordinary in the ordinary. A pregnant woman left by her husband cooks obsessively to cope with her loss, but never tastes a morsel. In an attempt to stay sober, a young alcoholic seduces her priest and embarks on a tour of caverns with him. An adolescent girl picks up bird-watching as a hobby and, in her newfound habit of observing others, discovers a budding romance between her mother and her neighbor. These stories, many published in The Paris Review, Glimmer Train, Story , and The Colorado Review , are full of characters seeking an escape from their lives while uncovering small moments of understanding that often have huge implications and consequences. They discover that they can only find peace once they stop searching for a way out. Through diverse voices and lively storytelling, Hood creates authentic, personal, secret worlds full of eccentric detail.
239 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2004
12 people are currently reading
300 people want to read
About the author
Ann Hood
72 books1,273 followersAnn Hood is the editor of Knitting Yarns: Writers on Knitting and the bestselling author of The Book That Matters Most, The Knitting Circle, The Red Thread, Comfort, and An Italian Wife, among other works. She is the recipient of two Pushcart Prizes, a Best American Spiritual Writing Award, a Best American Food Writing Award, a Best American Travel Writing Award, and the Paul Bowles Prize for Short Fiction. She lives in Providence, Rhode Island.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 45 reviews
June 26, 2016
This collection of short stories revolves around women in the wake of failed relationships. For the most part, these are women who are coping with a divorce or romantic break-up. On a few occasions, the primary character is a youth coming to terms with a parent’s new romantic alliance. I like the short story for its tight construction which can carry such a punch. But, these stories rarely had that sort of power behind them. The characters and situations have shown up in so many novels and TV movies that they felt a bit tired.
January 19, 2009
This is a book of short stories, and many of them are quite good. There were several stories that I was disappointed to see end so abruptly, as I was really getting into them! This is a fairly quick read, and worth taking a look at if you have a free evening, or a chilly winter afternoon to while away.
February 19, 2008
i love recognizing places i know in stories...
May 28, 2018
Every story in this collection is a story of heart break and loss. Some stories left me with an "aha" moment when the main character realized something previously unknown ("Total Cave Darkness" and the title story, "An Ornithologist's Guide to Life.") Some left me breathless, wanting more. Almost all of them haunted me for days after I read them. I tried to space the eleven stories out so they wouldn't blend together, as short stories sometimes do.
Five of the stories are still in my head. In "The Language of Sorrow," Dora, a widowed grandmother, struggled with pain and loss throughout her life. But she felt the need to keep living and support her grandson.
In "Joelle's Mother," I liked the twisted perspective as three young sisters become aware of the pain caused by their father, when he divorced Joelle's Mother to marry their mother.
"Lost Parts" is a quirky story. How do you deal with the death of your boyfriend, especially when you were planning to break up with him but he died in a car crash and you were the driver?
"Inside Gorbachev's Head" is another story where the main character realizes the pain his own mother caused by forcibly separating the neighbors next door.
"New People" is a shocking story of betrayal, wrapped around a story of adjustment to new neighbors. This one caught me off guard. The signs were there, but I ignored them.
I enjoyed reading these stories and would recommend them. I look forward to reading more of Ann Hood's books.
Five of the stories are still in my head. In "The Language of Sorrow," Dora, a widowed grandmother, struggled with pain and loss throughout her life. But she felt the need to keep living and support her grandson.
In "Joelle's Mother," I liked the twisted perspective as three young sisters become aware of the pain caused by their father, when he divorced Joelle's Mother to marry their mother.
"Lost Parts" is a quirky story. How do you deal with the death of your boyfriend, especially when you were planning to break up with him but he died in a car crash and you were the driver?
"Inside Gorbachev's Head" is another story where the main character realizes the pain his own mother caused by forcibly separating the neighbors next door.
"New People" is a shocking story of betrayal, wrapped around a story of adjustment to new neighbors. This one caught me off guard. The signs were there, but I ignored them.
I enjoyed reading these stories and would recommend them. I look forward to reading more of Ann Hood's books.
September 27, 2019
Good variety of short stories
February 17, 2011
This book was one that I read in stages. Each story stood on its own as a moving piece of literature with characters to which you can truly relate. A wonderful read that I will be sure to pass on to others.
January 21, 2017
Better than her novels but not as good as any other collection of short stories I've ever read. Also, I'm certainly no prude but I'm unbelievably tired of reading Ann Hood's sex scenes -- they seem so gratuitous and also completely distanced from reality.
May 10, 2022
I’m always quick to say I’m not a fan of the short story, but that tide may be turning. This collection of 11 stories didn't have a boring one in the bunch, though the title story didn't seem to have a point. And one vignette, New People, was disturbing to me on just about all levels. I admit I picked this up because I liked the title and cover, and thought there would be more stories on bird watching. Not so. More sex than bird watching. Still, I do enjoy Ann Hood’s writing. The stories are so diverse, but oddly, she used the same character names in a few different stories, leading me to think I was somehow supposed to tie them together. One example was a male Randy in one story, then a female Randi in another. Overall, an engrossing read.
February 12, 2021
As other reviewers have said, this is a pretty bleak little collection of character stories. It offers eleven vignettes on the basic theme of the many ways sexual desire and acting on that desire can deeply ruin lives. Hood's writing transports the reader into the scenes and the characters' heads well, and I did enjoy the subtle mystical elements in Lost Parts and the title story, An Ornithologist's Guide to Life (which was my favorite overall for its subtlety). But overall, this book is a meh for me. It has inspired me to seek out a different Little Free Library for my serendipitous fiction.
September 5, 2017
I wish I knew this was a collection of unrelated short stories when I started it… I guess that was my fault. However, while some of them were interesting enough, others were dull and hard to get through. And the final one, which talks about ornithology, really made absolutely no sense at the end of the day.
April 1, 2020
Some good stories but characters, although all the affairs seemed very repetitive. I especially liked "Language of Sorrow" involving the grandmother and her adolescent, father-to-be grandson. I admit that I picked up the book based on the cover and title; I thought more of the stories would involve bird watching!
May 15, 2024
I gave up on this after 2 or 3 short stories. The stories were mostly good but the endings were not - it's like the author chickened out or lost her focus or something. So where an ending should have pulled it altogether and packed a punch in a way that gave the reader something profound to think about, it just didn't. I got a little frustrated after a while and gave up.
March 29, 2022
i picked this book up on a whim at a used bookstore that was closing down. these are interesting stories, often sad ones, which i like. sexier than i expected too sometimes though to be fair i don’t know how much i was expecting it
July 6, 2023
I'm very confused by the review quote on the cover,"A collection of short stories that makes it possible to be proud to be human." I guess, if you're the type of person who feels better about not being as messed up as your neighbors.
August 17, 2017
Nice little book of character studies. Ann Hood does characters so very well.
February 5, 2023
(Print) I’ve had this on my bookshelf for years and glad I finally read it. I enjoyed every single short story. Beautiful writing, interesting themes.
January 11, 2024
This a book of short stories that are well written but sad and depressing.
June 23, 2024
I enjoyed some stories more than others, but that's usually how it is with collections. I appreciated that most stories had an undertone of grief, which is appealing to me at the moment.
December 10, 2024
Frustratingly well written! I got invested in her characters in the short stories, only to have the story end with no resolution.
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December 11, 2025I love Ann Hood's writing. This did not disappoint as usual.
June 23, 2009
The dedication to An Ornithologist's Guide to Life makes me tear up whenever I read it but it's important for putting the stories in context. The dedication reads: In loving memory of my daughter Gracie Belle / September 24, 1996-April 18, 2002.
The short stories in An Ornithologist's Guide to Life share the theme of family and loss. They aren't all about death and they aren't all about mothers and children but there is always a need for an intimate connection (through family, friendship, love) and a loss (either feared or actual).
Ann Hood creates memorable characters who linger longer after their stories end. There's a alcoholic woman who seduces a reverend nine years her junior and takes him spelunking. In another one, a pregnant woman recently separated from her husband bakes beautiful deserts to keep herself sane but doesn't eat what she creates. There is a friendship ended over an unwanted pregnancy. And so forth.
With the exception of one story, "Inside Gorbachev's Head" I enjoyed the book, connected with the characters and experienced the wide range of emotions that come with life. "Inside Gorbachev's Head" knocked me out of the moment though. It's the story of now grown children learning the truth behind the parties that went on in their home and next door. It's a much angrier and sensationalist piece than the other ones and it just doesn't seem to fit.
Despite the one disappointing story, I rated the book five out of five. It's a book that will stick with me and that I will consider giving as a gift in the future.
The short stories in An Ornithologist's Guide to Life share the theme of family and loss. They aren't all about death and they aren't all about mothers and children but there is always a need for an intimate connection (through family, friendship, love) and a loss (either feared or actual).
Ann Hood creates memorable characters who linger longer after their stories end. There's a alcoholic woman who seduces a reverend nine years her junior and takes him spelunking. In another one, a pregnant woman recently separated from her husband bakes beautiful deserts to keep herself sane but doesn't eat what she creates. There is a friendship ended over an unwanted pregnancy. And so forth.
With the exception of one story, "Inside Gorbachev's Head" I enjoyed the book, connected with the characters and experienced the wide range of emotions that come with life. "Inside Gorbachev's Head" knocked me out of the moment though. It's the story of now grown children learning the truth behind the parties that went on in their home and next door. It's a much angrier and sensationalist piece than the other ones and it just doesn't seem to fit.
Despite the one disappointing story, I rated the book five out of five. It's a book that will stick with me and that I will consider giving as a gift in the future.
January 29, 2016
Short stories usually aren't my favorite but these were interesting. I kept wondering what the connection might be (and noticed that often the same names were used between stories - so was this woman's son Dan the same Dan in the second story?). I don't think there was meant to be one, but I almost felt like the stories weren't enough. "After Zane" and the title story almost felt too short for me, although "Dropping Bombs" seemed the perfect length. I liked these peeks into people's lives but some of these stories were just so ODD - like "New People" (was the husband really doing all that????) and "Language of Sorrow" - and weren't quite the same feeling as simpler stories like "Escapes" or even "Total Cave Darkness." The language was lovely but I wanted fewer stories with more depth.
March 13, 2015
I have mixed feelings about books comprised of short stories, sometimes they are great and sometimes they just miss the mark. I really love stories that tie together somehow, or at least have a theme. I feel like that is the one place this book fell short, I just didn't see the connection between the different characters.
What I do love about short stories, and Ann Hood does this well, is they give you a taste of a plethora of different books. It's amazing how the author was able to capture the essence of each story with just one chapter. I do wish some of the stories were longer or had more of an explanation, especially the one with wife who cheated on her husband who was a... child molester? I was very confused with that one.
What I do love about short stories, and Ann Hood does this well, is they give you a taste of a plethora of different books. It's amazing how the author was able to capture the essence of each story with just one chapter. I do wish some of the stories were longer or had more of an explanation, especially the one with wife who cheated on her husband who was a... child molester? I was very confused with that one.
June 3, 2014
Is this badly dated? Is this just not a very good book? I know 2004 was when Rich People Having Affairs In Connecticut was the big literary genre, and the author was nice enough to at least transplant most of the stories to Rhode Island, but jeez. Overall, Lady Has Affair With Her Minister was my favorite and Lady Has Affair With Her Poolboy was my least favorite. The title story—Young Lady Witnesses Her Mother Having An Affair With The Neighbor—is oddly unlike the others and its placement at the end of the book makes it even clunkier than it would have been already.
March 12, 2014
Ann Hood wraps of all of these stories in 15-20 pages. Each one elegantly tells the struggles of every day life yet she is able to wrap them up neatly. Sometimes the endings left me wanting more or gasping in disbelief! I love short stories and this is by far one of the better collections I have read!
June 21, 2008
I am about 1/3 through and loving this. There is something bittersweet about short stories. The fact that you invest in them but they are so fleeting and these stories compliment that feeling so well. Thank for the loan Mandy!
June 8, 2010
I enjoyed nearly all of the stories in An Ornithologist's Guide to Life. Hood writes well and creates strong characters. Each story deals with love, sex and loss in a unique and interesting way.
It reads quickly and is a nice alternative to a typical beach read novel.
It reads quickly and is a nice alternative to a typical beach read novel.
January 1, 2012
A collection of short stories, some really good and some OK. One exceptional one was about a housewife who starts an affair with a young gardener, and then finds out that her husband has been doing some rather strange things as well.
February 28, 2015
How well do we really know the people we love? What are the ways that parents, spouses, siblings, children can fail themselves and each other? Such human stories. Funny and heartbreaking at the same time. I'll definitely be reading more from Ann Hood.
July 29, 2007
Ok read. I think I've decided that I just don't like short stories.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 45 reviews