The urban owls How Flaco and friends made the city their home

Christian Cooper

Book - 2025

"A picture book about how owls like Flaco experience the city and how young readers can protect and admire them in the urban environment"--

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Review by Publisher's Weekly Review

Making his picture book debut, Cooper (Better Living Through Birding, for adults) catalogs a handful of wild owls who have taken up residence in New York City, starting with Flaco, the famous Eurasian eagle-owl who escaped from the Central Park Zoo: "He flew and flew and flew! If you'd been stuck in a cage your whole life, wouldn't you?" Barry the barred owl, a keen hunter, attracts devoted sightseers because of her dependable appearance on a favorite roost. Great horned owl Geraldine "still catches all the food she needs" following an injury ("A body that's different doesn't mean you're not able to do great things. Just ask Geraldine!"). The survey concludes with the appearance of Rocky, a saw-whet owl that arrived one year via the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree. In light-filled digital spreads, Adam (The Secret of Fall) shows the owls in flight and at rest, emphasizing their city-bird status by picturing them near fire escapes and neon signs. Drawing frequent parallels between owls and humans ("Flaco worked the night shift"), cadenced text assures readers that owls might be more proximate than they think. Owl facts conclude. Ages 4--8. Author's agent: Gail Ross, WME. Illustrator's agent: Alice Jin Zhang, Astound US. (Feb.)

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Review by Kirkus Book Review

An acclaimed birder and science writer offers informal introductions to some of the Big Apple's less common feathered visitors and residents. Cooper begins with Flaco, a Eurasian eagle owl who escaped from the Central Park Zoo and went on to work the "night shift, like most owls do (and like some people do too)." He goes on to profile other owls who became New Yorkers. Some were just temporary residents, like Rocky, a northern saw-whet owl inadvertently transported to the city while concealed within the branches of the Rockefeller Center holiday tree, or a snowy owl who didn't even stay long enough to acquire a name. Others, such as Geraldine, a great horned owl who successfully hunted despite an injured foot that never healed correctly, stuck around for longer. "A body that's different doesn't mean you're not able to do great things," he writes. "Just ask Geraldine!" Lavishing attention on details of distinctive patterns and feathers, Adam portrays the birds in magnificent close-ups, in flight with skyscrapers and bright lights in the background, swooping down silently on oblivious mice, and perched on a branch while staring up at viewers with urbane "Can you believe this?" expressions; meanwhile, racially diverse observers point and gesticulate in the background. Though the author steers clear of specific dates and details in the main narrative, he does close with further facts about each species, as well as providing general pointers for spotting and living with these elegant wild guests. A breezy, appealing whoo's whoo. (print and web resources, selected sources)(Informational picture book. 6-9) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.