Page 20 - Boca Club News - November '24

Page 20, Boca Club News

The Arts
The Arts

Book Review… “What the Chicken Knows:

A New Appreciation of the World’s Most Familiar Bird”

By Nils A, Shapiro changing flocks, that she
has filled the pages of this
All you need to know deceptively slim 72-page
is that the author is book with an extraordinary
Sy Montgomery. number of surprising facts
about the birds we all—
For millions of readers around mistakenly—thought we
the world, and I do mean millions, knew.
the name Sy Montgomery is Within the first few
associated with more than 35 books, many of which pages you will readily
have climbed the bestseller lists in 25 countries around understand why more
the world–most describing her exciting adventures with families than you might
some of nature’s most fearsome creatures. imagine throughout the
It is with good reason that the Boston Globe has nation enjoy the company
described award-winning author Sy Montgomery as “a of chickens (how many “pets” offer the gift of eggs in 16 pages of full-color photos introduce us to some of the many
combination of Indiana Jones and Emily Dickinson” for return for their care?) and name each of the birds in their chicken breeds that most of us have never seen. At right is
the beautiful way in which she has written about such precious feathered family members for its individual one whose French name translates to “Thousand Flowers.”
experiences as being chased by a silverback gorilla in personality, color or other physical feature. As Sy notes,
Africa, hunted by man-eating tigers in India (National some are shy, some more aggressive; some affectionate, half pounds to eight, and attained national fame as Mike
Geographic produced a TV special about that), worked in others aloof. Just like humans. the Headless Chicken from 1945 to 1947.”
a pit with 18,000 snakes in Manitoba, swam with piranhas And they are smart! Here are just a few examples of For me personally, as I turned the last page of
and dolphins in the Amazon, studied octopuses in their the many surprises you will find in these pages. (Some “What the Chicken Knows” one thought struck me
Gulf of Mexico habitat for her classic National Book text has been omitted for lack of space): most poignantly: Ever thoughtful and considerate of
Award finalist “Soul of an Octopus,” was undressed by a • “In 2023, a study reported that roosters recognize their her readers, Sy Montgomery has kept this book’s focus
wild orangutan, learned the art of falconry so she could own reflections in mirrors—a common…measure of entirely on helping us to better understand and enjoy the
hunt as a partner with one of the world’s most feared self-awareness. Previous experiments show that apes, fascinating and fun facts about these remarkable birds
predators…and too many more to touch on here. like humans, do this.” who are so much a part of our lives.
So I was more than a little surprised when I learned that • “Only hours after leaving the egg they are able to walk, Not once in these pages does this author mention that
Sy’s new book, published this month, is devoted to…… run and peck.” (An adult chicken can run as fast as nine she herself is a vegetarian, nor does she devote a single
chickens! My first thought was, what could there possibly miles an hour!) sentence to the suffering of these sentient creatures from
be to learn about these birds that all of us already know • “Relationships are important to them. The average the cruelty of the factory-like poultry industry. It was not
so well? chicken can recognize more than 100 other chickens. her purpose in writing this book.
How wrong I was! And how fortunate we all are to They can remember the past and anticipate the future, and Sparing us such a balanced narrative is her gift to this
have so knowledgeable a guide as Sy Montgomery to they communicate specific information through at least book’s readers despite what I know to be her own deep
enrich our lives once again in making us aware of what 24 distinct calls.” A warning signal from a rooster to his feelings on the subject, having read and reviewed half a
unrealized wonder and beauty surrounds us, all too often hens, for example, will alert them to whether an enemy dozen of her earlier books.
under-appreciated. is approaching by ground or from the air! As a senior now, I realize that if this book had been
For those not yet familiar with Sy’s background, There is hardly a page without an eye-opening surprise: written decades ago it might have been a life-changing
I should point out that she and her author-historian “The disturbing fact that, on the way to the soup pot, a experience in one sense for me. Perhaps it’s not too late. I
husband, Howard Mansfield, live in New Hampshire and chicken can continue to run around after decapitation hear those plant-based burgers and other meat substitutes
for decades have shared their home’s property from time does little to bolster appreciation for the species’ more are pretty good…and I would feel so good about myself.
to time with an assortment of animals, from their border refined traits. In fact, one rooster was able to live for I strongly suggest you lay your hands on a copy of this
collie dog, Thurber, to a pig that they raised from a tiny 18 months after his head was cut off. Farmer Lloyd book as soon as possible…even if you have to scramble
runt to 500-plus pound Volkswagen-sized Christopher Olsen, hoping to please his visiting mother-in-law, who to get it!
Hogwood who wandered the town on his own getting particularly savored boiled chicken neck, failed to kill
handouts from the butcher, pet scratches from the kids the rooster when his axe missed the bird’s carotid artery
and became the subject of a bestselling book by Sy. and left one ear and most of the brain stem intact. Not
But always among her favorites have been the small only did the victim survive, but he grew from two and a
flock of egg-laying hens that Sy calls her “little Ladies,”
who have their own chicken coop but are allowed free
run of the backyard under the protection of the several
latest team of roosters. NOW ACCEPTING NEW PATIENTS
And one could not want a better protector than a
rooster, as two episodes described by Sy make very clear:
one in which a fox that had sneaked onto the property with
chicken dinner in mind got the shock of its life facing an Boca Raton Concierge Medicine Doctor
angry, charging rooster and did a rapid about-face…and
another time, when Sy’s husband, Howard, was lying on
the ground repairing a lawnmower. As she describes it: Board Certified in
“Just beyond the narrow space between the grass and
the machine’s metal undercarriage, movement catches Internal Medicine
your eye. Scaley reptilian, yellow feet, heavily armed with with Added Qualifications in
long, pointed claws—and, just above the toes, curved,
knife-sharp spurs—are purposefully striding toward Geriatrics (2002).
you at face level. It feels like that scene from Jurassic
Park, where the humans are hiding from the hunting Steven E. Reznick, MD, FACP
velociraptor—an animal from which, in fact, your avian
assailant is descended. Voted a “Best Doctor”
“You have been detected. The ominous feet hurry now,
pounding the ground in a frenzy. There is no mistaking by his peers.
it; this is a rooster on a rampage—the bane of many an
otherwise peaceful barnyard.” Call to request a complimentary meeting
What to do? The answer, shockingly, is to pick it up
and cuddle it! with Dr. Reznick.
It is from Sy’s several decades of her own experience
raising her “Ladies,” many from chicks, plus her
Roosters and all that she has studied about her ever- 561.368.0191

7280 W. Palmetto Park Road | 205N
Boca Raton, FL 33433
www.bocaconciergedoc.com