Michael Edmonds
A Room of One's Own 2717 Atwood Ave., Madison, Wisconsin 53704
press release: From ancient American Indian shamans to Renaissance explorers to modern conservationists, Taking Flight: A History of Birds and People in the Heart of America (ISBN: 978-0-87020-836-2, Paperback: $28.95) illuminates the history of human interaction with birds, through a Midwestern lens. This cultural history explores how and why people have worshiped, feared, studied, hunted, eaten, and protected the birds that have surrounded them for more than twelve thousand years.
Author and birder Michael Edmonds combed archaeological reports, missionaries' journals, travelers' letters, early scientific treatises, the memoirs of American Indian elders, and the folklore of hunters and enslaved people in the Midwest to reveal how our ancestors thought about and acted toward the same birds we see today.
Whether you're a casual bird-watcher, a hard-core life-lister, or simply someone who loves the outdoors, Taking Flight will show you knew ways of thinking about birds, people, and the extraordinary history that connects us. For as author B.J. Hollars says of Taking Flight, "After reading this, you'll never look at birds the same way; you'll never look at humans the same way, either.
Author Michael Edmonds has been a recreational birder for three decades. He is the Wisconsin Historical Society's Director of Programs and Outreach and also author of the Wisconsin Historical Society Press's new centennial history, The Wisconsin Capitol, as well as author of two other award-winning Society Press books, Out of the Northwoods and Risking Everything. He is coauthor with Samantha Snyder of the 2017 Society Press book Warriors, Saints, and Scoundrels and has written articles for the Wisconsin Magazine of History and other journals. He graduated from Harvard University in 1976, joined the Wisconsin Historical Society staff in 1982, and has taught at the University of Wisconsin since 1986.
EARLY PRAISE
Meticulously researched and supremely readable, Taking Flight explores the wondrous convergence between American history and avian history. Who knew how long we've flocked together? And how vital our interconnectedness really is? After reading this book, you'll never look at birds the same way. You'll never look at humans the same way either."
B.J. Hollars, author of Flock Together: A Love Affair with Extinct Birds
"As a historian and a birder, I found Taking Flight a wonderfully engaging invitation into the stories of how people and birds have interacted in the long history of the Midwest. There's something here for every kind of birder; whether you're fascinated with plumage or the deep impression birds have made on Midwestern folklore, Taking Flight will draw you in with its beautiful prose and its fascinating account of how and why humans seek the company of birds."
Leslie A. Schwalm, professor, University of Iowa