Poet Christine Burrows (a.k.a. Dolly'sPoems on fanstory) has compiled one hundred thirteen poems about birds from around the world, with extensive research into the plumage, eating habits, nesting behaviors, and mating rituals of each. Poetic Bird Watch, published in 2020 and available on Amazon, is a thoroughly entertaining, educational, illuminating, and colorful book. Most of the illustrations in the book are her own, and they often include intense color compositions that are worthy of magnification. Six fine examples of that are the illustrations for the Eurasian Blue Tit (p. 23), the magnificent Lilac-breasted Roller (p. 56), the Little Bee-Eater (p. 57), the Malachite Kingfisher (p. 64), the Painted Bunting (p. 70), and the Red-billed Firefinches (p. 77). Her descriptions are particularly detailed and skillfully written, with an eye for detail. Readers will agree that Christine Burrows freely shares her sense of admiration for all of these birds, regardless of their behavior. The shortest poem is seven lines, but the average poem length is between twelve and sixteen lines. I found at least one minute poem, and several poems that seemed identifiable as sonnets. The majority of the book is written in quatrains, in iambic pentameter, with alternating end rhymes.

     One of my favorite lines is: "I hear them purring sweetly in the night" ("Eurasian Collared Dove," p. 24). I thought these lines were delightful about the Brolga Dance: "the two display a hustle and a tussle, with bobbing heads all strutting in romance." Another readable line with fine 's' and 'w' alliteration is in the poem about the Lilac-breasted Roller: "I swoop and seize, my wings are well-designed" (p. 56). One of the more unusual revelations about parenting behavior is to be found in "Emu Dads" on page 22. Throughout her book, Christine Burrows' sense of assonance, consonance, meter, and rhyme are well-developed. The footnotes on each page are also worth reading. For example, I was astounded to find out that 'emus are strong swimmers.' Upon further research, I found that to be the case, although when they do, they appear to look like shaggy dogs swimming with legs folded in the back like ducks. Christine Burrows has definitely done in-depth research. The range of birds covers such common songbirds as the Robin Redbreast (p. 81) all the way to birds I had never heard of, such as the Shrika (p. 88), which apparently is native to Asia and Africa.

     The only room for editing possibilities I found was regarding punctuation. But after all, the birds are not worried about punctuation, either.

     I rate this book as excellent due to its wide range of avian subjects and amazingly organized details about each bird. The poems testify to Christine Burrows' sense of observation and research skills, but they are also very enjoyable to read. Some of the birds seemed to have character traits which were extremely human. I would definitely recommend Christine Burrows Poetic Bird Watch to anyone who loves birds. It is also clean enough that I would recommend it for use in public high school libraries to reinforce biology and bird appreciation. The copy I paid for was gently used on Amazon for $16.73. The price for a new book was ranging around $27.00. The book is larger than most poetry books (8 inches by 10 inches) and full-color on every page. It also inspired me to go back to other bird poems and start re-writing.