When There Were Birds cover art

When There Were Birds

The forgotten history of our connections

 Preview

£0.00 for first 30 days

Try for £0.00
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

When There Were Birds

By: Roy Adkins, Lesley Adkins
Narrated by: John Telfer
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

Confirm Purchase
Pay using card ending in
Switch payment method
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.
Cancel

About this listen

A landmark book that charts humanity's changing relationship with birds—from the ancient Egyptians to the twenty-first century

No other group of animals has had such a complex and lengthy relationship with humankind as birds. They have been kept in cages as pets, taught to speak and displayed as trophies. More practically, they have been used to tell the time, predict the weather, foretell marriages, provide unlikely cures for ailments, convey messages and warn of poisonous gases.

When There Were Birds is a social history of Britain that charts the complex connections between people and birds, set against a background of changes in the landscape and evolving tastes, beliefs and behaviours. It draws together many disparate, forgotten strands to present a story that is an intriguing and unexpectedly significant part of our heritage.

©2022 Roy and Lesley Adkins (P)2021 Hachette Audio UK Animals Great Britain England
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Listeners also enjoyed...

 The Road cover art
A Feathered River Across the Sky cover art
The Easternmost House cover art
Jack Tar cover art
The Turning Tide cover art
Next to Nature cover art
Land Healer cover art
Wild Isles cover art
Regeneration cover art
On the Duty of Civil Disobedience cover art
The Swiss Family Robinson cover art
Birds, Beasts, and Bedlam cover art
Swifts and Us cover art
Two for Joy cover art
Curlew Moon cover art
The Stubborn Light of Things cover art

Critic reviews

"A marvellously original slice of social history." (Daily Mail, Book of the Week)

"The facts and folklore of birdlife, and man's equivocal relationship with birds, are dissected in admirable detail in this handsome new book." (Sunday Times)

What listeners say about When There Were Birds

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1
  • 4 Stars
    2
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    2
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1
  • 4 Stars
    2
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Audible.co.uk reviews

Amazon reviews
Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for veyza

Recommended for all bird lovers

A comprehensive social history of the role of birds in British culture. Exhaustively researched. Recommended for all bird lovers.

Report this

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!