The Owl Who Liked Sitting on Caesar: Living with a Tawny Owl
The sweetly smiling older gent on this book’s jacket is seen inside in photos, too, but they depict a much-younger man, often with a little, stern owl perched on his shoulder. The tawny owl, Mumble, met her end too soon, and thus it took Windrow (The Last Valley, 2005) many years to put aside his sadness and pull together his notebooks and photos depicting their 15-year owl-man relationship, living together in England. Windrow has an endearing, entertaining voice, not without a sense of humor. He not only describes his relationship with the little owl (“love at first sight”) but also gives owl history, the species’ contemporary existence, precautions, and more. Windrow’s journal entries from the time are scattered throughout, and they reveal his careful attention to Mumble’s learning to “speak” and fly and adapt to her unusual life. Containing many photos as well as Christa Cook’s beautifully detailed sketches, this is a gentle, touching love story that will appeal to all pet owners, not just those fond of tawny owls, which Windrow describes as “something like cats that can fly.” --Eloise Kinney