WCAS Book Discussion: Vesper Flights by Helen Macdonald
Channel: Western Cuyahoga Audubon
Date: 2024-01-31

Event: WCAS Book Discussion: 𝑉𝑒𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑟 𝐹𝑙𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡𝑠 by Helen Macdonald
Host: Drina Nemes, Member, Western Cuyahoga Audubon Society
Date: January 16, 2024 at 7 p.m. EST

Description: Host Drina Nemes, Western Cuyahoga Audubon member, leads us in our fourth season with fascinating topics ranging from the charismatic hummingbird to the discovery of the fungal communication networks of forests. Learn more about our WCAS Book Club and other book review resources on the website: https://www.wcaudubon.org/book-discussions

Book Synopsis:
In 𝑉𝑒𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑟 𝐹𝑙𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡𝑠, Helen Macdonald brings together a collection of her best loved essays, along with new pieces on topics ranging from nostalgia for a vanishing countryside to the tribulations of farming ostriches to her own private vespers while trying to fall asleep.

Meditating on notions of captivity and freedom, immigration and flight, Helen invites us into her most intimate experiences: observing the massive migration of songbirds from the top of the Empire State Building, watching tens of thousands of cranes in Hungary, seeking the last golden orioles in Suffolk’s poplar forests. She writes with heart-tugging clarity about wild boar, swifts, mushroom hunting, migraines, the strangeness of birds’ nests, and the unexpected guidance and comfort we find when watching wildlife.


Western Cuyahoga Audubon is a chapter of the National Audubon Society based in Cuyahoga County in Northern Ohio, USA. WCAS seeks to connect and educate the public and conserve natural habitats for the sustainability of all bird species.