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| Gay-Neck:The Story of
a Pigeon; Dhan Gopal Mukerji: Boris Artzybasheff (Illustrator) |
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This is really the classic tale of boy and pigeon that was
first published in 1927. It was awarded the Newberry Medal for the best
children's book of the year. Quite an honor for any book, but a book about
pigeons and a boy no less. It is set in India, as you may have guessed from
the author's name. As noted it was published 1927, and I first read it some
years later. If there is a book that interested me in pigeons, this has to
be it. It takes some license in fact, but the story of a child and pet is
all there. I have read it several times since my first excursions and still
find something there every time. |
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$23: Mint hardback without dust jacket. I believe this to be the
1954 publication, but not certain. 13 |
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$10 Good ex-library hardback of the 1954 copyright renewal with all the associated markings and stamps, but fortunately the body of the book is tight and clean. 14 |
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This is the British version of Gay Neck, with as you can
see a completely different title. Not uncommon really for books published
in different countries to have different tittles. Don't know why, and probably
not smart, but just is. |
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$27 1988 Mint hard back and jacket. 10 |
| Pigeon Post; Arthur Ransome: |
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Arthur Ransome continues the story of the swallows and amazons
in this wonderful book. Once again we find ourselves lost in the world of
adventure that Ransome created. Pigeon Post follows the explorers
in their search for a lost gold mine. Braving danger in the mines, and a
mysterious stranger dogging their heels, our adventurers continue to enthrall
the readers of this informative and entertaining series for children [and
adults] of all ages. |
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$18 Mint paperback no jacket, 382 pages 15 |
| Victoria: The Biography of a Pigeon; Alice Rentont |
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The author tells a story so likely to capture, and keep
readers' hearts that it should be read by everyone. Alice and her daughter
found Victoria huddled against a pillar during rush hour in London's crowded
Victoria Station-a homely unfledged pigeon who had fallen from the girders.
Scooping her up, they ran for their train, not anticipating what they were
letting themselves in for-wholesale manipulation by one boldly insouciant
little bird.
Written as Alice's diary, the city bird's sojourn in the country describes
the transformation of the ugly duckling into a glossy beauty who, true to
her urban ancestry, thrived on noise and excitement. Victoria became a reckless
flyer, a music buff (preferring Mozart, Haydn, and rock), and an irresistibly
affectionate companion, who soon had everyone-including the cat, the dogs,
and the neighbors-in her power.
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| I challenge all, not to fall in love with Victoria, and mourn at the ending |
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$12 Very good paperback that would be excellent except as all paperbacks
has started to tan with age. Published 1998 3 |
| The Mighty Pigeon Club; Daniel San Sougi |
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Arthur tells us that homing pigeons save lives and deliver secret messages. He says they were war heroes and can find their way home from hundreds of miles from home, and that they can even win prizes, including money at the local fair. And so they start a club with all that youthful exuberance. But when he gives the club his flock, the other members soon learn that taking care of pigeons is a lot of work. Scooping up pigeon poop is just plain messy and the club members soon tried to find the way out of these - well messy chores.
A mint copy of this colorful hardback published in 2007. |
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$17 mint hardback copy with printed boards and dust jacket. 19 |
| Chester Cricket's Pigeon Ride; George Selden |
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This is the story of Chester Cricket's tour of Manhattan
riding on the back of his friend Lulu Pigeon. He gets a bird's eye
view of all the famous sights, from the Empire State Building to Central
Park, and we do too, through both words and charming illustrations. It's
fun to see New York through the eyes of the animals who live there, and who
consider themselves New Yorkers. This is a good book for reading out
loud. |
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$8 Paperback / Published 1983, Excellent. 3 |
| A pigeon and a boy; Meir Shaley |
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Finally a great novel for adults where pigeons play a grand role. From
the clever mind of Meir Shaley comes a mesmerizing novel of two love stories,
separated by half a century but connected by one enchanting act of devotion
and unrelenting yearning for home.
During the 1948 War of Independence--a time when pigeons are still used to
deliver battlefield messages--a gifted young pigeon handler is mortally wounded.
In the moments before his death, he dispatches one last pigeon. The bird
is carrying his extraordinary gift to the girl he learned to love while they
both learned to love their pigeons. |
Intertwined with this story is the
contemporary tale of Yair, a middle-aged Israeli tour guide favored with
bird watchers, who has his own legacy from the 1948 war, but is about to
learn much, much more. He learns that one of his American clients fought
in the area during Israel's 1948 war of independence. The American remembers,
piece by piece, the day when a homing pigeon handler, nicknamed Baby, was
killed and in his final moments, sent off one last pigeon. As the story unfolds,
Yair begins learns the mystery engulfing his life.
Unforgettable in both its particulars and its sweep, A Pigeon and A Boy is a tale of how deeply we love, of what home is, and why we, like pigeons
desire to fly in that one direction only, and give all to eventually return
to it. Meir Shalev's story of war, love and the longing for place uses pigeons
as an integral part of the story, and explores the unique relationship between
pigeons and their keepers. This story of love, war, and the most powerful pull of home, won Israel's
Brenner Prize. |
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$19 Mint hard back with mint jacket. 21 |
| Wringer; Jerry Spinelli |
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We know Palmer. We know peer pressure. We know the town that had yearly pigeon shoots. Palmer was unfortunate enough to live in that town and at age 10 all the young lads in town became wringers during the annual slaughter. Their job, pick up the dead and dying pigeons, wring their neck, and throw them into plastic garbage bags. What fun. Palmer's 10th birthday is coming up and it is the first time in his life he did not want to grow up. He knew he couldn't be a wringer, but he knew he could not escape. You know the story, you know the ending, but darn this is a good read. |
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$15 Mint hard back with mint jacket. 12oz |
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$10 Mint but remaindered paperback 6oz |
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$8 Excellent hard back with the exception that it is ex-libary. Only disfiguration is to the last end paper. Could be removed. 12oz |
| Blue Pigeons; Emma Gelders Sterne |
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Blue Pigeons is a charming story for young children of ancient Greece at the beginning of the 4th Century B.C.
Without attempting to go into the history of the time, it presents a delightful and accurate picture of the period.
Paulus is a slave boy, rescued from the island of Chios after a Spartan invasion, who grows up with an Athenian family. The children of the household become his great friends; but, being a slave, Paulus is debarred from most of their games. Eventually, by an act of courage and endurance he wins his freedom, and even his citizenship. |
| Many of the famous myths and traditions are retold. The life in the harbor and in the hills, the festivals and processions of the Acropolis are described. Socrates and Lysander appear. It is an excellent and charming introductory glimpse, for any child, of the spirit of classic Greece and the role pigeons played even then. |
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$32 Excellent hardback with some minor foxing on end paper with a rather poor jacket. Very nice colored prints. First edition, 1929 123pp. 20 |
| Speedwell; Ann Turnbull |
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Speedwell, the United States name of Pigeon Summer the
story of Mary, a young girl living in England during the Great Depression.
She helps her father raise homing pigeons and train them to race, and she
dreams that one day one of their birds will win a race. But her father loses
his job, and has to go to another village to find work. Mary tries to carry
on training the pigeons alone, in spite of her mother’s disdain for
the birds. Eventually, their differing points of view lead to a crisis during
which Mary and her mother learn to be more tolerant and understanding of
each other. This is a charming book with lots of accurate details about raising
and training racing pigeons. |
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$17 Mint hard back with mint jacket, 1992 first edition , 119 pages. 12 |
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Pigeon Summer; British version of Speedwell. |
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$18 Mint paperback, 119 pages. 3 |
| The Language of Doves; Rosemary Wells, Greg Shed (Illustrator) |
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Wells' latest picture book seamlessly entwines stories from two generations.
Julietta loves spending time on the rooftop of her Italian grandfather's
Brooklyn building, where he keeps his homing pigeons. On her sixth birthday,
Grandfather rewards her with Isabella, a "dove" of her own, and tells her
the poignant World War I story of Isabella's namesake, who, though wounded,
found her way home with a message that saved the lives of eight men. The
touching, sentimental story, about death (for both animals and people) and
about hope, speaks to subjects little known to children, who will probably
be as unaware of homing pigeons as they are of the circumstances of the Great
War. Shed's paintings, suffused with misty yellow light, leaven the sadness
of Grandfather's inevitable death and provide a wispy scrim from which to
better appreciate both the history and the sentiment. When Julietta's own
Isabella finds its way home after being lost, the story comes full circle. |
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$17 Published 1996, Mint hardback and cover. 15 |
| Pigeon City: Leon F. Whitney |
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Leon Whitney wrote several book on pigeons and particulary racing and health. He was as one might expect a veternarian and pigeon flyer himself. This is his first foray into the art of viction with a tale of three boys and then many adventures and trial they encounter the many facets of the hobby. It was orginally published in 1931 and was so well recieved that it was republished several times. |
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$23 exlibrary edition. 10 |
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$40 1962 edition very good hardback with good jacket. 15 |
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