The Backyard Bird Chronicles

 

The Backyard Bird Chronicles by Amy Tan

Nonfiction

2024

Finished on October 20, 2025

Rating: 4/5 (Very Good)

Publisher's Blurb:

A gorgeous, witty account of birding, nature, and the beauty around us that hides in plain sight.

Tracking the natural beauty that surrounds us, The Backyard Bird Chronicles maps the passage of time through daily entries, thoughtful questions, and beautiful original sketches. With boundless charm and wit, author Amy Tan charts her foray into birding and the natural wonders of the world.

In 2016, Amy Tan grew overwhelmed by the state of the world: Hatred and misinformation became a daily presence on social media, and the country felt more divisive than ever. In search of peace, Tan turned toward the natural world just beyond her window and, specifically, the birds visiting her yard. But what began as an attempt to find solace turned into something far greater—an opportunity to savor quiet moments during a volatile time, connect to nature in a meaningful way, and imagine the intricate lives of the birds she admired.

Random Thoughts...

Began reading on January 1st. Reading one journal entry each day. [This didn't last. I wound up reading some here and there, but not every day.]

Inspired to look up each bird mentioned by Tan on the Cornell Lab website. Listened to the bird calls, as well as noting physical characteristics that Tan has mentioned in her notations. Started watching Cornell Lab FeederWatch Cam at Sapsucker Woods, which is highly addictive. So many birds to see. Chickadees, nuthatches, juncos, cardinals, woodpeckers, jays, doves, tufted titmice, finches, etc.

Humor in sketch captions - gorgeous drawings of the birds! I was going to list my favorites, but they are all lovely. What a talent.

Tan is a very involved backyard birder:

Now that the migrants are returning in greater number, I have added more feeders to each of the four locations: the patio, the verandah, the office porch, and on the other side of the bathroom window. Sichuan Sunflower Seeds. Vindaloo Suet Mini Balls. Farm-raised Mealworms. Vegan Nectar. Spicy Suet. Nuts & Chews & Bugs. Nyjer Nirvana. Graines Pour Oiseaux Sauvages. Alaskan Taste Water. These are signs of my descent into madness.

Hand feeding a hummingbird – amazing!

Tan mentions the Camp Fire and the loss of the town of Paradise (Nov 2018) and as I read this entry, L.A. County was burning. When we drove through Oregon last summer, the smoke was so thick from the fires out there, and like Tan, I wondered how the polluted air would affect the birds. Do they fly far away to get out of the smoke?

Tan is very curious. She ponders the sounds of a hummingbird as it approaches a feeder or circles her head. Clicks and chirps that are accompanied by a tail swing. What is the purpose of these noises and movements?

What I Leaned:

Auricular – feathers around ears?

John Muir Laws advised his nature class to talk to yourself to encode details into memory and understanding while watching birds/animals.

Mention of a fake dead crow to ward off crows in backyard. One of our neighbors did this and it seems to have worked. We have a lot of crows with noisy babies in the spring. Might have to try it…

“Hummingbirds use sticky spider webs to bind together a strong flexible nest that attaches like rubber cement to a branch and expands as the babies grow.” (p. 48)

"When people compliment bird drawings, mine or others', saying they are 'better than Audubon,' they don't realize that there is a lot more that Audubon did than simply draw feathers on a bird, apart from being a racist slave owner. He took on the feat of drawing all the birds in America, tracking them down, capturing both their habitat and a signature behavior. (p. 112)

I enjoyed Amy Tan's birding journal, which spans five years (September 2017 to December 2022) and includes 132 drawings, sketches, and color illustrations by Tan. This is not the sort of book to read quickly, but rather over several weeks or months. 

Simply lovely.