The Princeton Encyclopedia of Birds
This is an updated paperback edition of theFirefly Encyclopedia of Birds(LJ10/1/03), published in the UK by Oxford University Press asEncyclopedia of Birds(previously,New Encyclopedia of Birds). Perrins (Oxford, fellow of the Royal Soc.) combines the work of 150 contributors and more than 1000 great color photographs, maps, and other illustrations to produce a stunning book that informs both amateurs and experts. Coverage includes form and function, distribution, diet, breeding biology, and conservation and environment. Any updating is subtle, as no titles in the bibliography are more recent than 2003. A notice in small print states: "You must not circulate this book in any other binding or cover and you must impose this same condition on any acquirer," an attempt to thwart the cost-saving strategy of rebinding paperback copies with less-expensive-than-hardcover editions. Whether this statement is legally binding is not for this reviewer to say. BOTTOM LINE The repackaging of this work under slightly varying titles by different publishers is a real disservice; this book is a gem and deserves to be known by one title. Highly recommended for all libraries as well as all coffee tables not holding the earlier hardcover editions. [Also released this month:The Princeton Encyclopedia of Mammals. ISBN 978-0-691-14069-8; theBirdsencyclopedia is available as an ebook through Oxford Reference Online.]—Teresa R. Faust, Vermont Dept. of Libs., BerlinCopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.