A Mystery Flock + Profane Birds
5 Reasons Why I Had to Buy Effin’ Birds
It’s been a minute since I’ve bought a real hardback book, but I couldn’t resist Effin’ Birds by Aaron Reynolds when I stumbled upon it at The Book Loft last time I was in Columbus. What a fantastic bookstore, by the way.
1. Copious cussing. These irreverent birds have big-time potty mouths, and I can’t get enough.
Wise owl, indeed.
2. High-low. I’m a sucker for an ironic juxtaposition, in this case between precisely rendered imagery and ornate, elegant type cheek-by-jowl with extremely crass verbiage.
3. Kickass dedication. “To my mother-in-law, who does not believe that this is an acceptable way to make a living” Sold.
4. Masterful satire. Certain whimsically named birds have bird-book-like entries with a short overall description, their habitats and identifying characteristics. Many sound like an actual person you probably know.
Have you encountered this bird in the wild?
5. Shareability factor. These birds beg to be memes. I’ve definitely texted a few at opportune moments.
Yes, maybe.
Big Bad Wool
In Big Bad Wool, her sequel to Three Bags Full, German author Leonie Swann folds us into a flock of sheep who must solve a murderous mystery before it’s too late. Seeing the world from a sheep’s eye view is equal parts refreshing, humorous and humbling. Where humans see ourselves as individuals above all else, the sheeps’ perspective is always collective—and yet each animal is also distinctly unique.
Swann’s writing is lyrical, with poetic insights just as relevant to “two legs” as to our woolly friends. And her naming of the sheep is whimsical perfection, including characters like Miss Maple (the smartest sheep), Mopple the Whale (the memory sheep who also loves grazing the most), Sir Ritchfield (the aging former lead ram), Othello (current lead ram), Cloud (the woolliest sheep), Heathcliff (the winter lamb) and Zora (who dreams of the abyss).
White sheep and white snow
Bloody red strikes the eye
Flock wisdom prevails
Breaking news: Apparently Swann’s first book, Three Bags Full, is going to be a movie released in 2026! The cast list looks amazing, including Bryan Cranston, Emma Thompson, Patrick Stewart, Chris O’Dowd, Molly Gordon, Hugh Jackman and Julia Louis-Dreyfus! I can already imagine those woolly stars on the silver screen.
How Swann’s sheep think about us humans.
