The author presents a different guide of bird field guide to birds. It is obvious that the author knows a thing or two about birds although chooses to dumb down in a slightly crude take at poking fun a birds. This book is obvious meant not to be taken seriously although for a non-birder reading it for humor, they may actually come away with learning real facts about birds. Some of the crudeness in this book is the use of profanity and suggesting certain birds deserve to be hunted because of their stupid behaviors. Because of this the audience for this book is adults who can recognize what is actually going on in this book.

First and foremost before you read this book, please make sure your expectations are in line with what this book has to offer. I see this book as a "parody" bird guide, not to say that's the author's intention. It is hilarious if you don't take things too seriously and don't mind bad words. The title of the book should be a BIG giveaway, but if you're still unsure, I would say that if calling birds dumbf*ck or that they are weird looking sh*t hurt your feelings or make you cringe then this book is probably not for you.

This second book by Matt Kracht and is just as funny as his first, but at a larger scale. Since I'm unfamiliar with birds from other continents besides North America, I enjoy learning about other species, their markings, behaviors and fun facts from this book. Examples of new birds (to me) that I'm intrigued by are; Red-billed firefinch (Africa), Peruvian Sheartail (S. America), Ruddy Shelduck (Europe-Asia), and Southern Yellow-billed Hornbill (Africa). The last part of the book includes a bird drawing lesson (lol), historical artifacts and arts with birds on them, cool!

Laugh out loud is always welcome and this book delivers. I have family members who looked over my shoulder to see what's so darn funny.🐦

Thank you Chronicle Books, and Netgalley for my ARC.
Publication date Oct 5, 2021

OK, the thing about reading and enjoying The Field Guide to Dumb Birds of the Whole Stupid World by Matt Kracht is knowing the actual birds that the author is talking about.

When you know them, and you know what they do, it is hilarious. For example, he talks about the Scrub Jay, whom he calls the Smug Jerk. He says “Due to climate change, this smug [bird] has expanded its range from California up the western coast [...] and is now regularly disturbing the peace of my backyard with its f****ing loud, harsh call.

Another example I was able to laugh at was his description of the Red-Tailed Hawk (which he calls the Red-Tailed F***)

“Look at this [bird]. You can tell he thinks he’s some kind of hot s***, but don’t be fooled because he often gets chased around by smaller birds such as crows. “ All true. Crows and ravens do go after the hawks.

Recommend for those who love birds, and study birds, and have birds.

<em>Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review</em>

A fitting sequel to one of the funniest books I’ve read in a long while. It’s more of the same, sure, but that doesn’t work against it. Kracht keeps that successful model and adds in *more* birds and cursing to give the people what they want.

Equal present here are the tools to actually get one started and somewhat integrated into birdwatching, lest this seem like a futile exercise. Evident from the moment he dedicates the book, you can see that it’s all in good fun.

So: If you liked the first one, you’re in for some more laughs but, if it wasn’t your jam the first time around, then don’t be expecting anything different.

Like his previous book, this too will adorn my coffee table.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Chronicle Books for the advance read

This is the kind of book that I would pick up in a bookstore because of the eye-catching title and ironically aesthetically pleasing cover art. While I enjoyed the first section detailing the author's journey, I felt that the rest of the book fell a bit flat. I loved the artist renderings of the birds and enjoyed the satirical descriptions, but I also found myself wanting more detailed and helpful/accurate information about each bird or artpiece to be included. I will admit that I felt personal vindication when the author bashed a particularly obnoxious bird that I am familiar with, so that was satisfying. I also liked that the author included beginner birding information but, again, I found myself wishing that the author also included actual helpful information along with his signature sass.
This book was eyecatching and fun but I felt it was lacking in some areas that could have made it a beloved and valuable resource while standing out from all the other birdwatching books out there.

Thank you for the E Arc NetGalley and Chronicle Books. I love birds and I have a sense of humor so I throughly enjoyed this read. Our backyard is home to many a California Smug Jerk and Red-tailed F*@!. The names and descriptions we’re all hilarious and the illustrations were beautiful. Must pick up for any bird lover who likes a good laugh.

This one brings me to tears as much as the first one did. Everyone could use some childish humor once in awhile. If the title doesn't give the you an idea as to the contents of the book, I don't know what else possible could. Perfect for when you need a good giggle.

Disclaimer: ARC via Netgalley
Can I just say this is the world wide bird guide you should use?
I think birds are funny. I love sparrows. They are so cool. But let’s face it, this book is correct. Birds can be stupid little f**kers. Or at least mean ones. I have seen birds dive bomb dogs. And peacocks attack everything. Or those birds that take all the cherries off the tree before you pick them. Yes, I am bitter about that. The tree was producing fruit for two years before I even got to try one.
So yeah, birds aren’t really nice.
And this book proves that. Herein, you will discover the birds that do disgusting things with blood. There are the birds who don’t really wear shoes. The birds who think they are cool but aren’t really.
Some of the humor does get a little repetitive. The inclusion of other ways to look at birds on artwork is also quite funny.
If you are a serious birdwatcher, you might want to skip this book. But if you are like me and like birds because they can be mean little buggers, you might enjoy this.

I can see this appealing to a certain type of irreverent, newbie birder. Maybe my son who is 12 years old.
and it is a good thing . Love the drawing and the descriptions and hope the book does well.

Oh, my! This bird book is very...irreverent to say the least. Definitely memorable, completely unexpected. The author highlights several birds with factual information such as Latin nomenclature, drawings and a zone map showing where they are found. He then uses his own rather descriptive names such as Southern Yellow-bill Horse-face, Stupid Eyes and Hoodlum Crow. But those are the mild ones. Most include expletives as do details.

My favourite (slightly redemptive) bits are examples of birds found in various forms of art in history such as a Greek gold coin and a Roman oil lamp and the hilarious testing your skills, how to read a bird and how to draw a bird sections. If only the majority of names and descriptions weren't so terribly crude. Birds are wondrous creatures and while they can indeed have laughably funny traits and names, this books takes them into a different realm altogether.

Best picked up here and there for short bursts of reading. Very funny and for lovers of a particular flavor of cursing and general sourness but with a underlying layer of sweetness (to me) about birds and birding. I thoroughly enjoyed it!

Only, it's only a bird. Why you heff to be mad? This presents itself as a quick spotters' guide to our feathered friends, only the author cannot find it within himself to call them friends. So a nuthatch is a "butt-hunch", a catbird is a "cat turd", a bullfinch is a "buttfinch" and I won't go into the ducks for fear of getting thrown off this site. It's just an excuse to grouse (see what I did there) in the most frat-boy manner, about how certain avian critters have more intelligence than the creator. This is the second book in this series, proving the dumb clucks are not flying about the world but comfortably running it.