Vesper Flights
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- Create Date：2023-03-12 03:19:29
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Helen Macdonald
- ISBN：B07ZHKPBJB
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
Kirsten
，
In ihrem Buch erzählt Helen MacDonald von dem， was sie liebt: von Vögeln。 Sie berichtet von Reisen， um einen Vogelzug zu beobachten und von den täglichen Begleitern， die vor unserer eigenen Haustür leben und die oft viel zu wenig Beachtung bekommen。Ich mag die Erzählweise von Helen MacDonald。 Sie schreibt nicht nur von dem， was sie sieht， sondern auch von dem， was es in ihr auslöst。 Die Beobachtungen alleine wären für mich wahrscheinlich interessant， aber auch sehr trocken。 Dadurch dass sie ihre In ihrem Buch erzählt Helen MacDonald von dem， was sie liebt: von Vögeln。 Sie berichtet von Reisen， um einen Vogelzug zu beobachten und von den täglichen Begleitern， die vor unserer eigenen Haustür leben und die oft viel zu wenig Beachtung bekommen。Ich mag die Erzählweise von Helen MacDonald。 Sie schreibt nicht nur von dem， was sie sieht， sondern auch von dem， was es in ihr auslöst。 Die Beobachtungen alleine wären für mich wahrscheinlich interessant， aber auch sehr trocken。 Dadurch dass sie ihre Leser aber mitnimmt zu den Orten， wo sie ihre Beobachtungen gemacht hat und die Freude beschreibt， die sie gespürt hat， macht sie das Buch lebendig。Helen MacDonald zeigt， dass man auch im Alltag genau hinschauen muss， wenn man etwas Besonderes entdecken will。 Auch wenn man glaubt， auf den ersten Blick etwas gesehen zu haben， lohnt sich immer noch ein zweiter Blick um das Unerwartete zu finden。 。。。more
Lily
，
3。5/5I love Macdonald's writing stye and I must have read H is for Hawk about a dozen times but I was somewhat disappointed by this book of essays。 Her prose is beautiful， as always， but I couldn't help feeling that about 1/4 or 1/3 or so of the stories were written as filler。 The story that stood out to me the most is the first one-- it's raw， painful， melancholic， and lovely。 The stories about the eclipse and the raising of the swans in particular stood out as well。 3。5/5I love Macdonald's writing stye and I must have read H is for Hawk about a dozen times but I was somewhat disappointed by this book of essays。 Her prose is beautiful， as always， but I couldn't help feeling that about 1/4 or 1/3 or so of the stories were written as filler。 The story that stood out to me the most is the first one-- it's raw， painful， melancholic， and lovely。 The stories about the eclipse and the raising of the swans in particular stood out as well。 。。。more
Linden
，
Everything I could’ve wanted in a nature writing anthology。 What an insightful， heartfelt perspective Helen MacDonald brings to the world。 I treasured each and every one of these essays / musings。
Sherbourne Valley
，
I only recently started this book， but so far I find it a wonderful read。 Jen
Lester Noel
，
Absolutely superb！！！…。next…。H is for Hawk
Bess
，
Here we have a grumpy naturalist who often has great insights on animals and occasionally has good insights on humans。
Becky
，
Helen Macdonald is a beautiful writer， but like most modern nature writing， these essays are depressing as hell。
Pamela
，
A series of essays， not all with the subject of birds。 Well written essays。 I listened to the audiobook that was narrated by the author。 She does a fantastic job， and I think this is the best way to read her book。 There are 41 essays in this book， many short and none too long。 Some of the pieces appeared in a magazine prior， but may have been reworked slightly for the book。 Only once did there seem to be a repetition of material， found in back-to-back essays。 Perhaps that should have been edited A series of essays， not all with the subject of birds。 Well written essays。 I listened to the audiobook that was narrated by the author。 She does a fantastic job， and I think this is the best way to read her book。 There are 41 essays in this book， many short and none too long。 Some of the pieces appeared in a magazine prior， but may have been reworked slightly for the book。 Only once did there seem to be a repetition of material， found in back-to-back essays。 Perhaps that should have been edited a bit more， but overall the essays do shine for the language and thoughts。Animals， well birds more specifically， do come up frequently in most of the essays。 She also wrote about her migraines， a refugee and a few essays were autobiographical。 。。。more
David
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This is a collection of essays from a keen-eyed naturalist。 The theme that ties many of the stories together is the accelerating loss of wilderness and biodiversity， which is tied to a general melancholic state of mind。 It's not really a sad collection， there are bright spots and delights in nature， but they seem to stand in relief to the general gloominess about the state of natural world and the likely worse changes to come。 I went back and forth between the hardcopy and audiobook。 Both are ex This is a collection of essays from a keen-eyed naturalist。 The theme that ties many of the stories together is the accelerating loss of wilderness and biodiversity， which is tied to a general melancholic state of mind。 It's not really a sad collection， there are bright spots and delights in nature， but they seem to stand in relief to the general gloominess about the state of natural world and the likely worse changes to come。 I went back and forth between the hardcopy and audiobook。 Both are excellent ways to read the collection， although I am partial to Macdonald's narration。 。。。more
Rennie
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Well written nature essays about birds， deer and a quite funny one about goats。 A nice change from murder mysteries， sci-fi and scary books about politics。
Sylvia
，
I first read Macdonald's book "H is for Hawks" and loved it， even though it was more about grief than hawks。 I went to hear her speak， when she came to Berkeley。 I encourage anyone who has a chance to see her to go。 Failing that google her - there are several videos worth of her with viewing。 I enjoyed this book and learned from it about the relevance of the natural world - with birds/animals， it's easy to see beyond ourselves that their ARE other ways to live and other needs beyond our own。 I a I first read Macdonald's book "H is for Hawks" and loved it， even though it was more about grief than hawks。 I went to hear her speak， when she came to Berkeley。 I encourage anyone who has a chance to see her to go。 Failing that google her - there are several videos worth of her with viewing。 I enjoyed this book and learned from it about the relevance of the natural world - with birds/animals， it's easy to see beyond ourselves that their ARE other ways to live and other needs beyond our own。 I also learned that the bird feeder industry is a $3 billion industry and that it is so widespread that it is actually changing some birds migration patterns。 Birder's are not yet sure of the impact。 I also learned that it is illegal in Europe， North America and possibly elsewhere to catch and cage a 'wild' bird。 For this I'm glad。 This book also brought back one of my earliest memories - coloring with my Mom。 We had a coloring book of birds of America and we would look up each bird in an encyclopedia， find crayons that mostly resembled their feather colors and then would color together at the kitchen table while doing our best to recreate the texture of the feathers。 。。。more
Karen
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This set of essays provides a thoughtful and insightful look at the nature world。 The author’s love of birds in particular， and her concern of changes to the environment， shine through。
Fernando Sánchez Ugarte
，
Un libro precioso
stephanie cassidy
，
Glassing the Skythe night prayer parts or penetrates the velvet or sounds within itits great echo pulsing out to ricochette to spread its kalediscopic awewe look through a small hole held into the bowl of our eye boneand swim and touch the shore stranger than when we left itwhile the water fills the holes our feet leave as soon as we've liftedand we are made traceless like the flight of flockslong after the sky is silent of them once more。 Nonethelesswe are better for having the pressure of it s Glassing the Skythe night prayer parts or penetrates the velvet or sounds within itits great echo pulsing out to ricochette to spread its kalediscopic awewe look through a small hole held into the bowl of our eye boneand swim and touch the shore stranger than when we left itwhile the water fills the holes our feet leave as soon as we've liftedand we are made traceless like the flight of flockslong after the sky is silent of them once more。 Nonethelesswe are better for having the pressure of it slip its bondsand touch our clavicle bone and mark us there with a mark-less burning。 。。。more
Martina D'Angelo
，
In “voli vespertini” la Macdonald ci guida in un valzer naturalistico fatto di esperienze personali e viaggi introspettivi。 Il libro è una raccolta di saggi， delicata， poetica e scritta in modo magistrale; alcuni capitoli indubbiamente più “corposi” di altri。 Helen ci apre gli occhi sulle varie complesse sfaccettature del mondo naturale e di come l’uomo stia rovinando tutto causando cambiamenti climatici irreparabili。 Meraviglioso il momento in cui descrive il rumore mediatico che causa la defor In “voli vespertini” la Macdonald ci guida in un valzer naturalistico fatto di esperienze personali e viaggi introspettivi。 Il libro è una raccolta di saggi， delicata， poetica e scritta in modo magistrale; alcuni capitoli indubbiamente più “corposi” di altri。 Helen ci apre gli occhi sulle varie complesse sfaccettature del mondo naturale e di come l’uomo stia rovinando tutto causando cambiamenti climatici irreparabili。 Meraviglioso il momento in cui descrive il rumore mediatico che causa la deforestazione mentre l’estinzione di alcune specie rare di insetti a nessuno sembra interessare。 Attraverso i suoi occhi ci possiamo immergere sul parallelismo che fa tra gli stormi e l'atteggiamento che abbiamo nei confronti dei rifugiati。È stato bello ritrovare White tra le righe， meno protagonista di come lo era in “io e Mabel” ma altrettanto essenziale。 。。。more
Anne Thomas
，
3。5 stars。 The overriding theme I saw in these essays was how animals and the natural world provide a lens for human society and experience （and that is in fact the topic of the closing essay）。 Some of these connections felt natural to me， and others felt like they were coming from a less familiar worldview， maybe specific to Helen Macdonald's political lens of Britain。 The other big theme was close attention to the natural world， which I always cherish。 There were several incredible， standout e 3。5 stars。 The overriding theme I saw in these essays was how animals and the natural world provide a lens for human society and experience （and that is in fact the topic of the closing essay）。 Some of these connections felt natural to me， and others felt like they were coming from a less familiar worldview， maybe specific to Helen Macdonald's political lens of Britain。 The other big theme was close attention to the natural world， which I always cherish。 There were several incredible， standout essays （my favorites were The Numimous Ordinary and the title essay）， a good number of short ones that I found punchy and enjoyable， and some less memorable ones。 Overall， H is for Hawk was more impactful for me。 。。。more
Arjan Van Noort
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Prachtig boek waarin in korte stukken een diep inzicht in de schoonheid van de natuur en het mysterie van het leven wordt gegeven。 Van gierzwaluw， nachtzwaluw en gloeiworm tot het bijna buitenaardse leven in een vulkaanmeer op 6000 meter hoogte in de Andes。 MacDonald geeft veel mooie waarnemingen， combineert dat met detailkennis en laat zien hoe zijzelf er persoonlijk in betrokken is。 Poëtisch en met oog voor het onverklaarbare mystieke van de beleving aan natuur en heelal als groter en betekeni Prachtig boek waarin in korte stukken een diep inzicht in de schoonheid van de natuur en het mysterie van het leven wordt gegeven。 Van gierzwaluw， nachtzwaluw en gloeiworm tot het bijna buitenaardse leven in een vulkaanmeer op 6000 meter hoogte in de Andes。 MacDonald geeft veel mooie waarnemingen， combineert dat met detailkennis en laat zien hoe zijzelf er persoonlijk in betrokken is。 Poëtisch en met oog voor het onverklaarbare mystieke van de beleving aan natuur en heelal als groter en betekenisvolle omhulling van het nietige menselijke bestaan。 。。。more
Megan
，
I know I’m in the majority here， but I did not like this book。 The bird facts in each story I did like， but her stories and musings， not so much。 I found myself zoning out and most of the stories blurred together and became very monotonous。
Miriam
，
*4。5"We need hard science to establish the rate and scale of these declines， to work out why it is occurring and what mitigation strategies can be brought into play。 But we need literature， too; we need to communicate what the losses mean。 I think of the wood warbler， a small citrus-coloured bird fast disappearing from British forests。 It is one thing to show the statistical facts about this species’ decline。 It is another thing to communicate to people what wood warblers are， and what that loss *4。5"We need hard science to establish the rate and scale of these declines， to work out why it is occurring and what mitigation strategies can be brought into play。 But we need literature， too; we need to communicate what the losses mean。 I think of the wood warbler， a small citrus-coloured bird fast disappearing from British forests。 It is one thing to show the statistical facts about this species’ decline。 It is another thing to communicate to people what wood warblers are， and what that loss means， when your experience of a wood that is made of light and leaves and song becomes something less complex， less magical， just less， once the warblers have gone。”“For there’s an immense intellectual pleasure involved in making identifications， and each time you learn to recognise a new species of animal or plant， the natural world becomes a more complicated and remarkable place， pulling intricate variety out of a background blur of nameless grey and green。” 。。。more
Maya Gopalakrishnan
，
Insightful and beautiful essays about the natural world and who we are in relation to it。 Savoured over months！
Audrey
，
Notes:- Inspector Calls - a brief vignette about the connection between a boy and a parrot- Field Guides - paying attention to the world around us; inversion from naturalists as destroyer-collectors to observer-conservers- High Rise - the intersection of human worlds; the wonder of migration over the Empire State Building- Ants - seeing the activity of insects by observing the activity of their predators， birds- Sex， Death， Mushrooms - the idea of rain， moisture serendipitously exposing the hidd Notes:- Inspector Calls - a brief vignette about the connection between a boy and a parrot- Field Guides - paying attention to the world around us; inversion from naturalists as destroyer-collectors to observer-conservers- High Rise - the intersection of human worlds; the wonder of migration over the Empire State Building- Ants - seeing the activity of insects by observing the activity of their predators， birds- Sex， Death， Mushrooms - the idea of rain， moisture serendipitously exposing the hidden world of fungi and mycelia through the sporadic fruiting bodies of mushrooms- Eclipse - on the awe-inspiring nature of a total eclipse- In Her Orbit - understanding the vastness and extremes of space by first understanding the extremes of our own planet 。。。more
sky
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an absolutely beautiful read。 this book has not only taught me so much about the world and the field of naturalism， it has been immensely validating - macdonald's emotional entanglement with birds so closely mirrors my own that i was moved to tears a couple times。 this book will be so dear to me for a long time an absolutely beautiful read。 this book has not only taught me so much about the world and the field of naturalism， it has been immensely validating - macdonald's emotional entanglement with birds so closely mirrors my own that i was moved to tears a couple times。 this book will be so dear to me for a long time 。。。more
Julia McNamee
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Mushrooms "are the visible manifestations of an essential yet unregarded world。" This book is so beautifully written and thought-provoking。 I read it ten minutes at a time， once a week， and it nourished my soul。 Mushrooms "are the visible manifestations of an essential yet unregarded world。" This book is so beautifully written and thought-provoking。 I read it ten minutes at a time， once a week， and it nourished my soul。 。。。more
Mike Warner
，
MacDonald is a calm and patient guide into the natural world。 Yet moments of urgency mark her otherwise relaxed engagement with the natural world via reflections on climate change and its related horizons。 Her natural world begins to extend beyond the winged animals taking flight to refugees who take flight from their violent homes or migraines and their creeping inevitability as it relates to climate change and our ability to respond or Brexit and feeling lost within a country of birth and heri MacDonald is a calm and patient guide into the natural world。 Yet moments of urgency mark her otherwise relaxed engagement with the natural world via reflections on climate change and its related horizons。 Her natural world begins to extend beyond the winged animals taking flight to refugees who take flight from their violent homes or migraines and their creeping inevitability as it relates to climate change and our ability to respond or Brexit and feeling lost within a country of birth and heritage。Many intersections of human and natural ecology stem from her being an astute observer of both and an eloquent describer of analogies each provides the worlds of the other。In a change of tone， she also grapples with numinous and transcendent language unfamiliar to her largely areligious background， but pressing in upon her naturalism。 Something wholly other。 。。。more
Elsa
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Sain vihdoin viimeisteltyä Iltalentoja esseekokoelman。 Lempiesseeni oli ehdottomasti kirjan nimikkoessee， Iltalentoja， jonka kauniin kiehtovat kertomukset ja kuvaukset tervapääskyistä resonoivat minussa vahvasti。 Tästä päästäänkin yhteen kirjan ydinsanomaan。Ihmisten on tapana etsiä luonnosta yhtäläisyyksiä omaan itseensä， katsoa sitä itsemme peilinä ja itsetutkiskelun välineenä。 Tästä seuraa， että emme näe luontoa kunnolla。Kirja herätteli ajattelemaan rajaa villin luonnon ja ihmisluonnon välillä Sain vihdoin viimeisteltyä Iltalentoja esseekokoelman。 Lempiesseeni oli ehdottomasti kirjan nimikkoessee， Iltalentoja， jonka kauniin kiehtovat kertomukset ja kuvaukset tervapääskyistä resonoivat minussa vahvasti。 Tästä päästäänkin yhteen kirjan ydinsanomaan。Ihmisten on tapana etsiä luonnosta yhtäläisyyksiä omaan itseensä， katsoa sitä itsemme peilinä ja itsetutkiskelun välineenä。 Tästä seuraa， että emme näe luontoa kunnolla。Kirja herätteli ajattelemaan rajaa villin luonnon ja ihmisluonnon välillä。 Ihmisillä on erikoinen tarve tunkea näppinsä toisten reviirille - hoivata ja hallita omilla ehdoilla， mutta ärsyyntyä jos luonto toimiikin toisin。 Lintuja ja oravia ruokitaan omalla kotipihalla， mutta jos lokki nappaa leivän kädestä， se synnyttää usein valtavaa ärsyyntymistä。 Myös luonnon ja lintujen käyttäminen poliittisina ja tutkimusvälineinä mietitytti。 Eläimet eivät ole enää vain sijaistutkijoita， vaan myös tieteellisen tutkimuksen välineitä， kuin tunnistimia tai luotaimia。 Esim。 ilmastonmuutoksen vaikutuksia länsi-Antarktikseen tutkitaan merinorsuihin kiinnitetyillä lähettimillä。 ”Tämä ajatus biologisia näytteitä keräävistä välineistä hämärtää tekniikan ja eliöiden eroa， poistaa vaivihkaa eläimen toimijuuden”。 Vuonna 2013 ”epäilyttävää” satelliittilähetintä kantavaa lintua luultiin jopa vakoojaksi， ja se vangittiin。 Lintu onneksi vapautui syytteistä， mutta löytyi kuolleena stressaavasta kokemuksesta。 Suosittelen kirjaa lämmöllä！ 。。。more
Molly
，
These little essays are about the intersection of human and natural life， grief， and change。 I think Helen Macdonald is the only writer who really captures the inevitability of environmental loss without some of the false hope that other writers seem to want to throw in。 This book obviously didn’t have the strong narrative arc of H is for Hawk but the short essays are beautifully crafted and make you think about stopping to notice the small things and moments of time that make up our lives。 In p These little essays are about the intersection of human and natural life， grief， and change。 I think Helen Macdonald is the only writer who really captures the inevitability of environmental loss without some of the false hope that other writers seem to want to throw in。 This book obviously didn’t have the strong narrative arc of H is for Hawk but the short essays are beautifully crafted and make you think about stopping to notice the small things and moments of time that make up our lives。 In particular， I liked “High-Rise，” “The Human Flock，” “Swan Upping，” “Vesper Flights，” “Birds， Tabled，” “Dispatches from the Valleys，” and “The Numinous Ordinary。” 。。。more
Michael Koh
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A lot to like about this book， and a lot that unfortunately went over my head。 I had to look up a few words。But when it’s good， it’s REALLY good。 “Symptomatic” is one of the best things I’ve ever read。
Jody McDevitt
，
Helen Macdonald is a fine writer who crafts her thoughts exquisitely。 Some of these essays were eye-opening; a few were less interesting， more about her personal struggles than about the natural world she loves。
Marianne
，
Majority of book hard to read as an American and a bird illiterate person。 Last couple of essays were great though - better pacing and more interesting subject matter。 Overall the book gave me slightly better appreciation for nature。
tori nm
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read H is for Hawk in one day and gave it 5* so I don't know why I was surprised to like this so much。 Macdonald uses nature （mostly birds） as sensitive metaphors for migration， immigration， climate change， etc- biggest strength is the descriptive writing， especially description of animals。 I read this in small sections over the course of a week and I think it was better with space to breathe between stories。 Particularly enjoyed the story about birdwatching at the top of the Empire State buildi read H is for Hawk in one day and gave it 5* so I don't know why I was surprised to like this so much。 Macdonald uses nature （mostly birds） as sensitive metaphors for migration， immigration， climate change， etc- biggest strength is the descriptive writing， especially description of animals。 I read this in small sections over the course of a week and I think it was better with space to breathe between stories。 Particularly enjoyed the story about birdwatching at the top of the Empire State building， the one about the boy and the parrot， and the one about eggs。 Honorable mention to the story about her father knocking over a goat near the end。 Coming along the road towards me on his way to the covert， his head high， his body smeared all breast-deep in clay that stained the lower half of him copper ochre， came a fox hound， a pale hound。 He was alone which was wrong。 But being alone made him the type of all hounds that ever existed。He was running as if he'd been running all day， and he was running as if he would never stop， tongue out and eyes fixed。 He was running to be with the rest of the hounds and the sound was drawing him along the rainy roads as if he were underwater and swimming up to the light to breathe。I was transfixed。 I'd never seen a hound be a hound before。 He was doing exactly what he needed to be doing。 He was tired but joyful。 He was late but getting there。 Lost but catching up。 。。。more
tpg0
，
As an AI language model， I don't have personal opinions or beliefs， but I can provide a brief summary of the book "Vesper Flights。" "Vesper Flights" is a collection of essays written by the British author Helen Macdonald， who has previously won various awards for her memoir "H is for Hawk。" In this new book， Macdonald explores the natural world around us and our relationship with it。 She observes various aspects of nature， such as the migration of birds， the behavior of foxes， and the life cycle of wasps， and reflects on how they relate to human experiences such as love， loss， and identity。 The essays touch on issues such as climate change， conservation， and the importance of biodiversity。 Overall， "Vesper Flights" has been praised for its poetic language， insightful observations， and timely message about the need to pay attention to the world we live in。
tpg1
，
As an AI language model， I do not have personal views or preferences but can provide you with information about the book 'Vesper Flights'。 'Vesper Flights' is a non-fiction book of essays written by British author Helen Macdonald。 Published in 2020， this book covers various topics from nature， science， politics， and literature。 Macdonald's essays are contemplative， evocative， and emotionally charged， accompanied by her affinity for the natural world。 The book is well-received by critics and readers， remarked to be a powerful collection of nature writing， and full of insights about the intersection of nature and humanity。 Some critics also praised Macdonald's beautiful and poetic writing style， as well as her ability to address significant issues in contemporary society。 In summary， 'Vesper Flights' is a highly recommended book for readers who enjoy thoughtful， meditative， and sometimes poignant essays that delve into the complexities of human and the natural world。
tpg2
，