Your All-Time Classic

What is your all-time classic falconry book? You know... the one you'd sit in front of a fireplace with, enjoying a single malt and a pipe full of Stonewall or Penzance tobacco. Ya only get to pick one!

Mine, as of right now, is "A Hawk for the Bush" by Mavrogordato, or the writings by Edmund Bert. Since I said you can only pick one, I'd have to go with Edmund Bert. I trained my current female coopers according to his method for goshawks, and have been amazed at the outcome. Every time I read it, I find a new bit of information. I've only recently, maybe in the last 5 years, gotten into the classics. They are hard to find in good condition, but I sure enjoy them when I do!

Ronald Stevens Observations on Modern Falconry is mine.

Hi Paul,

be careful, reading those old classics becomes addictive, and even more so if it relates directly to your own falconry.

Bert is undeniably a classic (as are Mavo's Hawk for the Bush and Ronald Stevens' Observations), and another you might enjoy is Fredrick II's book.

For me, my 'classic' isn't so old, but ranks right up there amongst the best falconry books ever, and that's Ray Turner's Gamehawk.
It relates directly to my circumstances and ambitions, but anyone flying a falcon from a waiting on position in particular, will benefit greatly from reading and understanding it (of course Ray would cite Latham, Bert, and Fredrick II as hugely important falconry classics).

Happy reading,

Tony.

My first falconry book was NAFHH (North American Falconry and Hunting Hawks), and I've got fond memories reading through it over and over again before I started my apprenticeship. It was a big expense for me as a student back then, as the price of the book was more than I'd been spending on food and beer most months (eg- Ramen noodles and Natural Light beer was about all I could afford back then). ;)

Ronald Stevens' book is right up there on my list as well. Packed full of good stuff. I learned the "proper" hooding technique from his book. I'm still trying to master the art of hooding, but that book, and the few paragraphs in it that deal with hooding, sure made a difference for me!

NAF&HH played a big part in my falconry as well. When I was 8, I was introduced to falconry by Tim Kimmel when my dad and I went quail hunting. I immediately went to the library, and that was the only book they had on the shelves that dealt with falconry. From that time on, till I graduated from high school, I was the only one that ever checked that book out. Couldn't even begin to tell ya how many times I read that book cover to cover. It was the 5th edition I believe. Wonder if they still have it there.....