To See Every Bird on Earth: A Father, a Son, and a Lifelong Obsession Audiobook

" A fascinating story of the quest for the longest life list. In addition to being a great personal story, the travel tales are tantalizing and bird lore very informative. "

" A fascinating look into the world of birders - particularly the intense "listers" who have seen thousands of bird species in their lives. I consider myself a casual birder and found the intensity and passion of the birding community incredibly fun and interesting to learn about. This isn't the best book in the world, but it certainly tells a good father/son story while sharing with you the quirks of these unique people. "

" Enjoyed this book far more than I expected. It took me a little while to read the book, but every time I picked it up I enjoyed it. For an amateur birder it is a dangerous book and could give someone ideas of becoming a big lister. While that isn't feasible anytime in my near future, it has definitely given me a renewed interested in birds and has also given me insight into the world of birders that was quite fascinating. I'm not sure if this book would appeal to someone who doesn't already have an interest in birds. I can't decide if I liked it so much because of the writing or because I enjoyed hearing about all the birds Koeppel's father and other saw. I am disappointed to be finished reading the book! "

" interesting to get insight into the subculture of birding, and also a good personal story. A bit slow at times. "

" Honestly fairly difficult for me to get though, despite not being long at all. The focus on birding in this story is just so different from mine, I found myself gritting my teeth a lot. A LOT. ...And reading especially irritating passages to anyone near me so they could understand why it took me about a month to make it through this <300 page book. "

" Fascinating book on the idea of birding. Loved that the overarching story of his fathers career as a big lister was really just an excuse to write about life, both his father's and his own. "

" Well, I certainly don't think this book improved my view of Big Listers as kind of self-centered and emotionally dysfunctional (after reading a book also about the amazing Phoebe Snetsinger) but I thoroughly enjoyed this son's view of his dad's growing listing obsession, and how he eventually resigned himself and even accompanied his father on a birding trip (one on which his father achieved his 7000th bird.) His efforts to connect with and understand his father, even though he'd been hurt himself, were inspiring. "

" I really enjoyed this book! It captured the passion of one man for a hobby - and obsession - the birds. It's told through the lens of his son trying to understand his father, who was (is?) still alive while the book was being written. It's a unique window into the world of competitive birding, and it seems to share both the beauty behind it and the ugly edges, too. The resolution could use some work, but the rest of the book sang to me. "

" Best birding book I have read since the one about the Big Years. "

" I love birding. After reading this book I realized I will never have a life list like the most obsessed birders! "

" A compelling read, for the most part. Made me meditate on the drive to compile lists. "

" Purchased for my mother but I have to read it to make sure it's appropriate. I love this style of writing. The story of the father and son interlaced with the birds. "

" Interesting, but oftentimes overly personal. "

" This book is not just about bird watching. It's about the passion of our collecting, interests and hobbies; the activities which make us who we are outside of our work (or maybe a crossover with our work.) A keeper, share it with someone you care about. "

" I really enjoyed this book. It has a lot of character development. "

" A very funny book from a son's point of view. The son relates the quest for his father's insatiable appetite to see as many birds as he can. Birders are the ultimate list makers and the list is never-ending. The list becomes an obssession and a race. It was very comical and an enjoyable read. "

" Not as good as "life List". More More personel reflection then birding adventures. "

" An inspiration for fledgling (hah) birders and compulsive list-makers like me. A son chronicles his father's discovery of birding as a child and subsequent rise into the ranks of famous listers--people who travel the globe trying to check birds off their life lists. I feel so...insignificant. "

" I don't really understand the obsession of counting birds if you're not really interested in them. But the descriptions of the author's family life and family dynamics I enjoyed very much. "

" accounts of top-ranking world birders are not easy to find and this is one of the few. I liked his book on the history of the banana better. "

" Great book, a fascinating look at natural places over time as well as a personal narrative about a man's search for his passion to see as many living species as he can "

" This book really is more about Koeppel's relationship with his father, and less about birding. If you're looking for an impressive world-birding travelogue, I recommend Phoebe Snetsinger's Birding on Borrowed Time. For a great book about birding, check out Kaufman's Kingbird Highway. "

" I really did not like this book much. I thought the subject would be really interesting but the birds turned out to be an afterthought to the author's poorly written self-indulgent book about his sad sad life. Yawn. "

" Any birder will enjoy this book! But the author also did a great job of making a hard, difficult man (as seen through the eyes of his son) seem human after all. "

" I liked this book, but I felt bad about how dysfunctional his family was as a result of his dad's obsession with birding. "

" I don't really understand the obsession of counting birds if you're not really interested in them. But the descriptions of the author's family life and family dynamics I enjoyed very much. "

" accounts of top-ranking world birders are not easy to find and this is one of the few. I liked his book on the history of the banana better. "

" This book is not just about bird watching. It's about the passion of our collecting, interests and hobbies; the activities which make us who we are outside of our work (or maybe a crossover with our work.) A keeper, share it with someone you care about. "

" An interesting combination of the world of big list birdwatchers, travel, and family dynamics. On CD it was sometimes hard to figure out whether the father or the son (the writer) was speaking but it usually didn't matter. "

" A very funny book from a son's point of view. The son relates the quest for his father's insatiable appetite to see as many birds as he can. Birders are the ultimate list makers and the list is never-ending. The list becomes an obssession and a race. It was very comical and an enjoyable read. "

" A surprisingly good book - I enjoyed it very much! "

" Best birding book I have read since the one about the Big Years. "