What better way to "enlighten the masses" than to expose the U.S. government's ingenious bird surveillance system, aka Operation: Water the Country? In this handy but too-long guide to the Birds Aren't Real movement, readers can learn the why, how, who, when, and what of their feathered foes, as well as how to hold a Bird Truther rally to gain support, overthrow the U.S. government, and join the "underground movement" of the future. "Cleverly-hidden" ideas are also offered for those who read between the, ahem, power(ful) lines. No longer do citizens have to fear every Robin, Goose, Pigeon, Bluebird, Turkey, and Ostrich! Also featured: a kids' somewhat rhyming guide to fake birds; space-consuming sensitive and maybe-classified emails and other documents between our highest leaders about this BS (bird system); an unusually vivid history of EVERY past U.S. president, his looks, and highlights from his time(s) in office which may have or probably didn't lead to the need for fake birds (note: emphasis on looks); and ?helpful? tear-away fliers for spreading the news. Read at your own risk: may contribute to a wasted 1/2 hour here or there and possible bird poop targeting your car!

Thanks to NetGalley for this preview copy in exchange for my honest review. 3 1/2 stars rounded up to 4 for fun illustrations.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an eARC copy of Birds Aren't Real by Peter McIndoe & Connor Gaydos.

I certainly laughed out loud when I saw the title. Being a follower of r/BirdsArentReal and cracking jokes with my friends and significant other, this was a welcomed book. After all, Peter McIndoe & Connor Gaydos go into the very real (but also very fiction) truth of the government spies that we see daily on the power lines and in the trees. Reporting everything to the government and boy we may be in trouble. Especially if we're going from a sub-reddit to the very press!

The comics for me made it even better, but if the birds get ahold of it, they might figure out what is going on.

Beware the government drones.

Birds Aren’t Real by Peter McIndoe and Connor Gaydos
June 4, 2024
3/5 Stars
Humor/Satire

This book was <i>disturbingly</i> funny. What’s funny (scary, maybe?) is that people might just take it seriously? The former English teacher in me can see students using this as textual evidence for an argument.

I loved this book because I am a high school teacher, and these dingus kids believe everything. I love how the books talks about the origins of a conspiracy theory. Fun book.

Goodness, I just saw a few hundred birds sitting on the electrical lines over the highway, but thanks to this book, I know they were just recharging their drone batteries while spying on the drivers and transmitting facial recognition scans back to you-know-who.

Be aware, this is a parody that’s having fun with you. I totally knew that when I embraced this as my favorite conspiracy theory a couple years ago. I am always gobsmacked when some well-known person falls for a parody in social media, and I will be gobsmacked by any, umm, serious reviews of this funny book. Although, I admit I have never seen a baby pigeon.

The authors are having a lot of fun living in their minds and trying to inhabit yours, too, but I’m not sure who will read the entire book. But it’s goofy and it’s going to be a great gift for your crazy uncle to distract him from the aliens tunneling under the Canadian border. 3.5 stars.

Informative. Everything is very average and normal, nothing to see here.

My favorite part was the compressive summaries of all of the US presidents, as well as the information about the magnets. Very helpful and accurate.

Nothing further.

I was excited to read this but it did fall a little flat. It was a little over kill at some points and a bit drawn out but an overall comical read.

This was a fun read a-la Philomena Cunk and I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and learning all about the birds that are not real. 4.5/5

Absolutely fanatical about the Birds Aren't Real movement. The weaponization of satirization against harmful conspiracy theories is absolutely brilliant. However, this book felt like it didn't quite explore the concept in a way that justified the length. I tapped out around 40% because it felt too drawn out.

Thank you, NetGalley!

I thought I would like this book because I like the memes of birds aren't real. But I'm not convinced this book is a joke. The joke of birds not being real was so tiring after the first couple of chapters, it would have been a better podcast episode or blog post. This was way too long and not funny enough. It would have been a fun book if it featured other internet conspiracies but it didn't.