You'll love this one...!! A book club & more discussion

Things have gone to the birds! It's spring in the northern hemisphere and there are happy bird songs everywhere.

The challenge for June is to read a book based on the national bird from the country where you live. If you live in a large country like Canada or the United States, you may opt to chose the provincial/state bird.

National birds by country
Provincal birds of Canada
State birds of USA

The book you read will be inspired by your selected bird in some way. Your imagination may take wing and soar. You just have to come back to earth long enough to explain your reasoning.

If you opt for the provincial/state bird of the country that you live in (other than Canada/US), you will need to link to where that information is found.

Example - You live in Canada and the national bird according to the link above is the Canada Jay. When I click the link to Canada Jay, there is further information. It is also known as the Whiskey Jack. One of the colloquial names is Camp Robber. It also gives information regarding habitant like boreal forests and the Rocky Mountains. The bird has grey underparts and darker grey upperparts. When I first read that, I read "grey underpants".

From that information, I could use title, author, setting, cover colour, cover with the selected bird (lucky you if you live in Bhutan and have the common raven). You could even have a cover with a related item. Mountains, forest or a glass of whiskey in my case.

General Rules:

1. The book may be in any format - paperback, ebook, audiobook.
2. The book must be any genre.
3. The book may NOT be combined with the Year Long Challenge.
4. The book must be read between June 1 – June 30, 2020 (based on your local time zone).
5. The challenge is for one book. You may read more books if you chose but you may only report one.
6. The book must be 175 pages or more determined by the issue you read.

In the case of ebooks & audiobooks, use the hardcover or paperback edition to determine page length. From the book page, select “all editions”, then select the first paper edition as your guide. If reading an ebook and there is no paper edition, ask for a ruling. If reading an audiobook and there is no paper edition, your book must be a minimum of 6 hours long.

Scoring (based on the edition you read):

Genre:
5 pts - Biography/Memoir
4 pts - Science Fiction
3 pts - Scandinavian Mystery
2 pts - Horror
1 pts - Romance

Pages:

5 pts - 500 +
4 pts - 400 - 499
3 pts - 300 - 399
2 pts - 200 - 299
1 pts - 175-199

Title:
3 pts - First word starts with J, U, N, or E (may not be proceeded by the, an, a, etc.)

Author:
3 pts - First name starts with J, U, N, or E

Bonus Points - 2 each:

- A turkey dinner is served/eaten. (Turkey lovers month)
- Cover has a person smiling on it. (National smile month)
- Cover has hand(s) with nail polish. (National nail polish day)
- Character is a journalist. (CNN Day - who knew?)
- Cover has a hand gun on it. (National gun violence awareness day)

Thanks Almeta.

Hi Janice - I'm having fun gophering for this great challenge and have a question. You mentioned cover color. Can a large object on the cover be the same color as your bird? Example the house on the book cover is red and so is a cardinal. Or does the cover have to be 75% red?

Thanks

Jayme wrote: "Hi Janice - I'm having fun gophering for this great challenge and have a question. You mentioned cover color. Can a large object on the cover be the same color as your bird? Example the house on th..."

Let's stick with the 75% cover guideline.

Haha, I was so excited about finding out the Dutch national bird (I had no idea, I was expecting a pigeon or something) and then I found it on wikipedia, and it said 'black-tailed godwit' and I was like 'huh? what is that?!'. Luckily Google Translate helped me out and it makes sense.

The 'black' in the name should give me plenty to work with. Some other things from Wiki:
- shorebird
- orange during breeding season, grey-brown during other times, distinctive black and white wingbar
- breeding range: Iceland through Europe and areas of central Asia
- spend (the northern hemisphere) winter in areas as diverse as the Indian Subcontinent, Australia, New Zealand, western Europe and west Africa.
- breeds in fens, lake edges, damp meadows, moorlands and bogs and uses estuaries, swamps and floods
- Latin name is limosa limosa which means mud or muddy

(ps. I read underpants too!)

I am curious. My state bird is the cardinal. Could i read a book featuring a Catholic cardinal?

(ps. I read underpants too!)

Ditto!☺

Janice wrote: "Jayme wrote: "Hi Janice - I'm having fun gophering for this great challenge and have a question. You mentioned cover color. Can a large object on the cover be the same color as your bird? Example t..."

No problem. Thanks!

And I too read underpants.

Almeta wrote: "(ps. I read underpants too!)

Ditto!☺"

Me too 😂😂😂

Turns out the irish bird is Northern lapwing. Never heard of it but it is pretty. This bird gets around so I'll be spoilt for choice w8th settings!

Renee wrote: "I am curious. My state bird is the cardinal. Could i read a book featuring a Catholic cardinal?"

Yes, that would be fine.

My country bird is the bald eagle and my state bird is the cardinal. I have so many options I can gopher for.

Good idea with the Catholic cardinal, Renee. I was thinking of sports teams, since we have baseball and football teams named the Cardinals in the US, but it's not my favorite plan.

My first thought is to go with the Bald Eagle, which is a sea eagle, so I was thinking of a water on the cover or beach / seaside type setting.

For the black-tailed godwit, I'm now thinking of as the cover colours remind me of the bird

The other option is , as (1) the bird is a shorebird and the book is set on an island which I connect with shores, (2) the women on the cover seem to be standing on some kind of shore, and (3) the bird forages in water for food, and the book is about women divers who 'forage' in the water for shellfish.

Love it. The UK national bird is the European Robin. Ideas so far are:
Set in Europe
Main character/author's name is Robin
Robin on the cover/in title
Red cover
Set in winter/christmas
Winter scene on cover
1st or last of a series (first and last bird to sing each day along with the blackbird)
Storm clouds on cover (known as a storm cloud bird, sacred to Thor)
Norse mythology theme (see above)
Steeped in folklore
Blood in title (apparently thought to be red due to get close to Jesus)
Set in Victorian Britain (thought to have inspired the victorian postmen who wore red jackets and were called robins.

This should give me some options to choose from.

Shame I've already red The Redbreast.

Off to gopher now.

I like your creative thinking Sarah!

Peggy wrote: "I like your creative thinking Sarah!"

Thanks Peggy.

Options from first glance of TBR:
In The Blood (blood in the title)
Strange Weather (storm clouds on cover)
Going Postal (red cover and about postmen)
A Darker Shade of Magic (red on cover and quite round like the robin, first in a series)
Sunshine (red/orange cover, again gives a sense of roundness)
Red Sister (red in the title, also stormy clouds on cover, first in a series)
Runemarks (norse mythology and folklore, also red cover)

OK, did a bit of reading on wiki and here's what I got:

IRISH BIRD IS Northern lapwing



AUTHER "N" or "L"

WING COLOUR mainly black and white, but the back is tinted green.

LIVES IN lowlands of westernmost European : Marsh or wetland

MIGRATES TO north African, India, Pakistan, China.

IRISH TRANSLATION of name is pilibín, "little Philip"

So it's off to gofor I go.....

Kristie wrote: "My country bird is the bald eagle and my state bird is the cardinal. I have so many options I can gopher for.

Good idea with the Catholic cardinal, Renee. I was thinking of sports teams, since we..."

Oh I didn't think of using baseball teams for Cardinal that just might change my book choice. Thanks!!

Like Kristi I can either go with Bald Eagle for USA or cardinal for Virginia.
I'm going to go with cardinal for bird and have narrowed it down to these 2 options:

- cardinal on cover or
book is about dystopian baseball - St. Louis Cardinals is a national baseball team.

Now which one to read????

I was thinking "Please be an Emu, please be Emu"

It's an Emu. It's on our national coat of arms, because like a kangaroo, they cannot walk backwards (easily... I've seen a roo back up and it was ungainly and awkward. Not sure about emus).

But for options, can I go with state birds too? Aus is really good on emblems for states/territories, more than nationally. We all have a mammal, a bird, a flower, a flag, etc. It's very funny.

Mine is a Gang Gang Cockatoo, which even if I am not allowed to use, you should know about as they are awesome. Boy with the red, girl discrete in grey.

The Gnng Gang cockatoo is beautiful!

Rusalka wrote: "I was thinking "Please be an Emu, please be Emu"

It's an Emu. It's on our national coat of arms, because like a kangaroo, they cannot walk backwards (easily... I've seen a roo back up and it was u..."

Yes, go ahead and use the Australian state birds. There was a link to the list on the Wikipedia page for national birds. I was going to add it to the challenge originally.

I've decided to go with the Canadian national bird, Canada Jay. Because the Canada Jay inhabits the Rocky Mountains, I decided to go with a mountainous cover. The book I chose is Out of the Silence: After the Crash.


I really wanted to go with the Alberta provincial bird, the Great Horned Owl, because I love owls. But the book I had picked for it was People of the Owl at 607 pages. If the book really grabs my attention, I could read it rather quickly. If it drags, it could take me the whole month to read it and it is a week-long toppler month.

Now I'm undecided again!

Mine is Javan Hawk-eagle (Elang Jawa in my native), it's refered to Garuda and is the nation's emblem. So I have some options such as
Set in Java
Titled Hawk, eagle, elang, garuda, jawa, or endangered (?)
A character has a crest on the head (which is quite hard to find in novel)
The cover has shades of creamie white, light brown, chestnut, dark brown, and black
The cover indicates tall tree, forest/rain forest, or national park

If I can't find something more fitted the theme then maybe I'll go with

Janice wrote: "Rusalka wrote: "I was thinking "Please be an Emu, please be Emu"

It's an Emu. It's on our national coat of arms, because like a kangaroo, they cannot walk backwards (easily... I've seen a roo back..."

Thanks Janice. I have Dark Emu which I really need to read. But i like options, and Gang Gangs are awesome, so why not?

They usually live in the national park around us instead of the city but that all burnt down over summer. Mum said she had 6 in her backyard the other day, and we had black cockies in ours. Obviously all the shy birds are moving into the city for winter and I am all on board.

My state bird is the cardinal. Some gophering -

Books with red cover:


Cardinal on cover / in title:
The Cat Who Knew a Cardinal
This Is How You Lose the Time War

Author:
The Road of Hope: A Gospel from Prison (written by a cardinal)

Arizona's state bird is the cactus wren.



Facts that could be used to find a book:
cactus in the name
lives in the Sonoran and Chihuahuan Deserts
distinctive white eyebrow
they do not migrate
nests are the size and shape of an American football
cinnamon-buff underpants underparts
was designated the state bird on March 16, 1931
Campylorhynchus brunneicapillum means "curved beak" and "brown hair"
the bird's call "sounds like a car that just won't start" (youtube link)

One video I found on youtube was titled, "He's not scared of thorns!", which made me immediately think of the old book, The Thorn Birds. I checked to see if it was available as an ebook from my library. Umm, no. There's a 16 week wait for 2 copies!

I could read Beau Geste by P.C. Wren.

Margo wrote: "Turns out the irish bird is Northern lapwing."

That is cool. Uruguay's bird is Southern lapwing. :)

Utah state bird is the seagull (weird for a landlocked state - I know - but seagulls came and ate up a bunch a locusts that were destroying the Mormon pioneer crops back in the day). So I think I am going to go with Breath

because it's about surfing and for another challenge I am doing I need a book from Oceania

Katrisa wrote: "Utah state bird is the seagull (weird for a landlocked state - I know - but seagulls came and ate up a bunch a locusts that were destroying the Mormon pioneer crops back in the day). So I think I a..."

I'm not making the connection between seagulls and surfing in Australia. Could you expand a little more as to how this book fits the challenge?

Sandra wrote: "Margo wrote: "Turns out the irish bird is Northern lapwing."

That is cool. Uruguay's bird is Southern lapwing. :)"

Now that IS cool!!! We are direct opposites :-D

I love lapwings! I only found out about them a few months back.

I've whittled my choices down to these

AUTHER "N" or "L"
After the Fall

WING COLOUR mainly black and white, but the back is tinted green.




MIGRATES TO African, India, Pakistan, China.
Half of a Yellow Sun
Children of Blood and Bone
The Valley of Amazement
When the Ground Is Hard

Janice wrote: "Katrisa wrote: "Utah state bird is the seagull (weird for a landlocked state - I know - but seagulls came and ate up a bunch a locusts that were destroying the Mormon pioneer crops back in the day)..."

The cover is water - seagulls are ocean birds. I was looking for an ocean book. The actual bird is the California gull and I grew up in CA and surfing reminds me of home

Katrisa wrote: "Utah state bird is the seagull (weird for a landlocked state - I know - but seagulls came and ate up a bunch a locusts that were destroying the Mormon pioneer crops back in the day). So I think I a..."

Hah, nice link. I'll be really interested in your thoughts on this one. I should read more Tim Winton, but never sure where to start.

Katrisa wrote: "Janice wrote: "Katrisa wrote: "Utah state bird is the seagull (weird for a landlocked state - I know - but seagulls came and ate up a bunch a locusts that were destroying the Mormon pioneer crops b..."

Okay. Thanks for clarifying.

I am going to read The Eagle of the Ninth, which is the same story as The Eagle, which is the cover of the ebook, I bought at some point in the past after reading another story about the lost ninth legion. I picked this one for "Bald Eagle" - the USA national bird. Creative, aren't I? The word 'eagle is in the title.

UK/European Robin

I think I might read Harbour Street it's set in December/Christmas

Anna wrote: "UK/European Robin

I think I might read Harbour Street it's set in December/Christmas"

Anna, I live your thinking!

Cherie, why get creative when the perfect book is right there in front of you? I can't say enjoy, but it sounds interesting and sad.

Anna wrote: "UK/European Robin

I think I might read Harbour Street it's set in December/Christmas"

Please explain how robin equates to being set in December/Christmas. Here in Canada, we don't see robins until spring. They are usually our first sign of spring.

I'll leave it to Anna, but interestingly the few Christmas cards I received from my grandma in the UK before her dementia kicked in, when I was little always had robins on them. Still have them now. I feel like they must be more Christmasy in the UK because of that. No idea why! I mean, we don't even have robins here, let alone know their behaviour in cold weather.

Interesting! Here, we get cardinals or chickadees on our Christmas cards.

Janice wrote: "Interesting! Here, we get cardinals or chickadees on our Christmas cards."

We have the same here. I wouldn't have put together a robin with Christmas. I guess it's one of those interesting cultural differences that pop up every so often. I think robins as more of a sign of spring.

They're on christmas cards here too. I googled and apparently it stems from the UK, victorian times. Mailmen were required to wear a red outfit, which made them resemble robins. They were nicknamed robins and next thing you know, christmas cards with pictures of robins delivering mail were all over the place.

Oh, another website says that when Christ was on the cross, he had one particular thorn from his crown of thorns that really bothered him. A robin noticed, and pulled out that particular thorn. A drop of blood fell on the robin giving him the red chest (the Dutch name for robin is roodborstje, literally little red chest).

Personally, I'm going with the first explanation.

I am guilty of sending chickadee Christmas Cards. I love the bird. I pick the ones with Chickadees almost every other Christmas

Georgia’s state bird is the Brown Thrasher. The book I would like to read is Mama Day by Gloria Naylor. It takes place in Georgia. It has a good bit of brown on the cover. Brown thrashers are known to be protective,are strong defenders and from the book’s blurb, it would seem that Mama Day is both, as well. In addition, Brown Thrashers are migratory, usually migrating from New England to Georgia and one of the main characters(I think) in the book, moves from New York to Georgia. This character is named Cocoa, which is another shade of brown, found on thrashers. Finally, brown thrashers like to browse in thickets and dense brush, all prominent on the Georgia coast.

Robin's are ALWAYS on Christmas cards here in the UK. They are one of the only birds that sing during thee winter too, whilst the rest start in spring with breeding season. If you had to do word association on christmas, robins would be high up there . At least in the UK anyway.

Renee wrote: "I am guilty of sending chickadee Christmas Cards. I love the bird. I pick the ones with Chickadees almost every other Christmas"

I have a Christmas ornament of a chickadee that I cross-stitched. It's one of my favourite ornaments.

Well, I learned more about robins today than I expected.

Sarah wrote: "Robin's are ALWAYS on Christmas cards here in the UK. They are one of the only birds that sing during thee winter too, whilst the rest start in spring with breeding season. If you had to do word as..."

That is so interesting. I don't think anyone around here would make that association. Do you ever see cardinals or chickadees like we do or just robins?