Itemize Books As Wesley the Owl: The Remarkable Love Story of an Owl and His Girl
Original Title: | Wesley the Owl: The Remarkable Love Story of an Owl and His Girl |
ISBN: | 1416551735 (ISBN13: 9781416551737) |
Edition Language: | English |
Stacey O'Brien
Hardcover | Pages: 230 pages Rating: 4.1 | 9164 Users | 1572 Reviews
List About Books Wesley the Owl: The Remarkable Love Story of an Owl and His Girl
Title | : | Wesley the Owl: The Remarkable Love Story of an Owl and His Girl |
Author | : | Stacey O'Brien |
Book Format | : | Hardcover |
Book Edition | : | Anniversary Edition |
Pages | : | Pages: 230 pages |
Published | : | August 19th 2008 by Free Press |
Categories | : | Nonfiction. Animals. Autobiography. Memoir. Environment. Nature. Science. Biography. Birds |
Rendition In Pursuance Of Books Wesley the Owl: The Remarkable Love Story of an Owl and His Girl
When biologist Stacey O'Brien first met a four-day-old baby barn owl with nerve damage in one wing, she knew he had no hope of surviving on his own in the wild, so gave him a permanent home living with her. This is the funny, poignant story of their two decades together.On Valentine's Day 1985, biologist Stacey O'Brien first met a four-day-old baby barn owl -- a fateful encounter that would turn into an astonishing 19-year saga. With nerve damage in one wing, the owlet's ability to fly was forever compromised, and he had no hope of surviving on his own in the wild. O'Brien, a young assistant in the owl laboratory at Caltech, was immediately smitten, promising to care for the helpless owlet and give him a permanent home. Wesley the Owl is the funny, poignant story of their dramatic two decades together.
With both a tender heart and a scientist's eye, O'Brien studied Wesley's strange habits intensively and first-hand -- and provided a mice-only diet that required her to buy the rodents in bulk (28,000 over the owl's lifetime). As Wesley grew, she snapped photos of him at every stage like any proud parent, recording his life from a helpless ball of fuzz to a playful, clumsy adolescent to a gorgeous, gold-and-white, macho adult owl with a heart-shaped face and an outsize personality that belied his 18-inch stature. Stacey and Wesley's bond deepened as she discovered Wesley's individual personality, subtle emotions, and playful nature that could also turn fiercely loyal and protective -- though she could have done without Wesley's driving away her would-be human suitors!
O'Brien also brings us inside the prestigious research community, a kind of scientific Hogwarts where resident owls sometimes flew freely from office to office and eccentric, brilliant scientists were extraordinarily committed to studying and helping animals; all of them were changed by the animal they loved. As O'Brien gets close to Wesley, she makes important discoveries about owl behavior, intelligence, and communication, coining the term "The Way of the Owl" to describe his inclinations: he did not tolerate lies, held her to her promises, and provided unconditional love, though he was not beyond an occasional sulk. When O'Brien develops her own life-threatening illness, the biologist who saved the life of a helpless baby bird is herself rescued from death by the insistent love and courage of this wild animal.
Enhanced by wonderful photos, Wesley the Owl is a thoroughly engaging, heartwarming, often funny story of a complex, emotional, non-human being capable of reason, play, and, most important, love and loyalty. It is sure to be cherished by animal lovers everywhere.
Rating About Books Wesley the Owl: The Remarkable Love Story of an Owl and His Girl
Ratings: 4.1 From 9164 Users | 1572 ReviewsCommentary About Books Wesley the Owl: The Remarkable Love Story of an Owl and His Girl
I don't know if this should have 4 or 5 stars. Amazing literature - no. Amazing subject matter - yes. I do believe the author's message is correct. Anybody who believes that animals and people really can communicate with each other, can experience a very strong loving relationship with each other, should read this book. Communication and understanding does not have to occur through "talk". If you live with an animal for many years you come to understand just by looking at each other what theIt's easy to think of animals as simple creatures with various survival instincts built into their systems, certainly not capable of much more than eating, mating and surviving in their various habitats. But raise a baby owl and live full time with it and become its virtual mate, and it becomes apparent that there's way more going on in their brains and lives than imaginable. In fact, this owl Wesley communicates with the wonderful Stacey in almost every imaginable way including love, warmth,
This was recommended to me by Sara in response to me review of h is for hawk in me last muster. It is a memoir of Stacey O Brien about the two decades she lived with Wesley the Barn Owl. Stacey was a Caltech biologist when she adopted four day old Wesley. I listened to this audiobook in one sitting. It made me laugh out loud (a lot) and cry (a bit at the end). It made me heart happy. Ye get to learn fun animal facts, learn about the life of the author, and above all learn about the specific
I really loved the story of Wesley and the 19 years that Stacey O'Brien got to share with him and to witness his behaviour at first hand - quirks and all! He is an amazing character and the author has a great way of telling their story and you learn so much of barn owls in this book. As she is a biologist she understands their behaviour and from the moment she takes him in as 4 day old owlet with no chance of him surviving in the wild due to nerve damage in his wing, they both go on an amazing
***NO SPOILERS***For nineteen years, Stacey OBrien cared for an unlikely pet: a barn owl whose injured wing meant he never would be able to thrive in the wild. This is a heartwarming, amusing, and most of all, fascinating account of one biologists experience studying a wild owl in the closest way possible--by sharing her own home (and oftentimes pillow) with it over the course of its entire lifespan. The experience affected her profoundly. Even for readers not especially interested in owls or
When several of my Goodreads friends claimed that everyone would love this book, I assumed that statement was hyperbole, even though I was interested in reading it, but now I see why they said that. Im sure there are many readers who, in fact, would not like this book, but I think most people will appreciate and be smitten by it. Im surprised that there arent more 5 star ratings at Goodreads; only 33% gave it 5 stars and only another 37% gave it 4 stars. I loved it and it definitely deserves 5
Wesley was a man. An Owl man. A hunter. A protector. A fierce protector of his missus! He demanded his story to be told. The book blurb says it all. I won't try to improve on it.What I can add is that Wesley kept me enchanted and mesmerized. He had character and a sense of humor. He was wise, loyal and highly intelligent.I have read this book several years ago. It was a surprising gift from an American friend and I never knew it was going to be such a great delight in my life. The book is so
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