of a feather

of a feather is the third book in a trilogy that includes Ova Aves and Icarus, Falling of Birds. Conceived as a tribute to the teacher, naturalist, and ornithologist Gay Hansen — Holownia’s late partner and Thurston’s long-time friend, the collection combines Thaddeus Holownia’s photography of bird feathers with the poetry of Harry Thurston.

Taken individually, the photographs and poems are magnificent in their detail and poise, but together they show how both poetry and science can illuminate the natural world, drawing on the ideas of the likes of Rachel Carson and E.O. Wilson. The result is a wonderful tribute to Hansen and an enduring record of beauty in the natural world.