On August 27, the Read!Plant!Grow! book club (a partnership of Loudoun County Public Library, Watermark Woods, Loudoun Wildlife, Foliage Plants and Birch Tree Bookstore) discussed the book The Backyard Bird Chronicles by Amy Tan. Eight patrons were in attendance with an additional participant who attended online from South Carolina. Many of the attendees enjoyed the book and commented on the beautiful drawings that were included in the book and how they evolved throughout the book. Several attendees were inspired to start drawing the birds they see. As one attendee said, “Just do it, it does not have to be perfect.”

Photo by BJ Lecrone

The attendees shared their first bird memory. For some their first bird memory was associated with family and for others, while it was not their first bird memory, they shared significant bird memories that included times on vacation and simply sitting outside and really learning how to watch birds differently. One person pointed out that we often associate the changes of seasons with the weather and birds migrating, but if you are really paying attention to the birds, changes in the year occur when birds change how they are feeding, nesting, etc.

Another question we discussed was: do you have a life list of the species of birds you have seen? Several attendees quickly took out their phones and shared what unusual species of birds that they have tracked through eBird. This also led to a discussion about the birds we see at home, work and in surrounding areas. We even stopped to observe some of the birds flying above during book club meeting.

Some attendees challenged themselves to be more observant of the first bird they see in 2025 and to make note of this.

Our next book club meeting is November 26th at 7:00pm at Birch Tree Bookstore and Foliage Plants. We will be discussing The Language of Trees by Katie Holten.

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