Diary of a Pigeon Watcher

The New York Times calls this modern-day inspirational classic "exhilarating." In it, Doris Schwerin amuses herself by watching pigeons nested on the ledge outside her New York City apartment. She names them the Smiths and keeps a diary as she watches them survive a cold winter, raise squabs, fight off marauders. Recovering from breast cancer surgery, she identifies with the pigeons, who rekindle in her memories of her own family origins and ties. With unusual honesty, courage, and sensitivity, the author articulates her strongest emotions, including her fear of death and her need for love. A writer of keen insight and intelligence, Doris Schwerin accomplishes that rare feat of transforming ordinary events into universal themes. "This impressionistic memoir gently, with humor and intellectual and personal courage, explores the life, past and present, of a woman recovering from the shock and fear that accompanies radical breast surgery. Most women will identify strongly with Mrs. Schwerin, appreciate the charm of the writing, sympathize with the discomfort of childhood, and recall the poignancies of their own. Readers will find her courage in meeting a death threat and her ability to throw herself fully into life, past and present, admirable even exhilarating." The New York Times Book Review