Product Description

In this extraordinary narrative, Alan Tennant, a passionate observer of nature, recounts his all-out effort to radio-track the transcontinental migration of the peregrine falcon—an investigation no one before him had ever taken to such lengths.

On the Wing transports us from the windswept flats of the Texas barrier islands—where the tundra falcons pause during their springtime journey north—to the Arctic, and then back south, through Mexico, Belize, and into the Caribbean, in a hilariously picaresque and bumpy flight. At the helm is Tennant’s partner in falcon-chasing, George Vose, a septuagenarian World War II vet who trusts his instincts as much as his instruments. As the two men nearly lose their lives and run afoul of the law in the race to keep their birds in view and their rattletrap Cessna gassed up and running, Tennant renders with gorgeous precision and skill the landscape and wildlife they pass on the way and the falcons that direct their course.

On the Wing is a breathtaking encounter with these majestic birds—the icons of pharaohs, Oriental emperors, and European nobility—whose fierce mien, power, and swiftness have fired the human imagination for centuries. An unforgettable and mesmerizing tale that speaks to all our dreams of flight.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1401008 in Books
• Published on: 2005-02
• Format: Large Print
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 640 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Naturalist Tennant (The Guadalupe Mountains of Texas) describes his efforts to trail peregrine falcons on their epic migratory flights from the Caribbean to the Arctic in a detailed, impassioned account that's part nature study and part gonzo travelogue. After radio-tagging a young peregrine off the coast of Texas, Tennant teams up with George Vose, a former WWII combat flight instructor, to follow the bird on its spring migration north. Plenty of excitement—run-ins with Canadian Mounties, trouble with Vose's battered plane—follows as the men track their "guiding angel," the bird they name Amelia. After a trip to the peregrine's Alaskan breeding grounds, Tennant and Vose follow three new peregrines on the fall migration down the coast of Mexico and Central America, where their adventures include going into a free-fall over the Caribbean Ocean and being mistaken for DEA agents. Tennant pauses to consider nearly every creature he encounters along the way, from polar bear to insect, describing its connection to the land, and, in the inevitable bittersweet turn, revealing the environmental degradation that threatens its survival. With a nature-lover's deep concern rather than an ideologue's rhetoric, Tennant emphasizes the connection between man and beast, reflecting as well on his own need for migration and adventure. 8-page color insert not seen by PW.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From AudioFile
Alan Tennant writes and narrates his experience of following a migrating peregrine falcon in an old Cessna piloted by a buddy. The two men follow the falcon, on which a transmitter is attached, from their home in Texas to the Arctic, and then south through Mexico, Belize, and into the Caribbean. The abridgment is somewhat difficult to follow, and Tennant is an uninspired reader; the combination makes the audio production somewhat a bore. Tennant's voice is gravelly and indistinct and doesn't express emotion. Even when he loses his girlfriend, he can't make the listener care. Tennant's unique story is interesting and would have benefited from a better reader. A.B. © AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine

From Booklist
*Starred Review* Twenty years ago, peregrine falcons were slowly recovering after being decimated by DDT, and ornithologists were attempting to learn about their extraordinary transcontinental migrations (peregrine means wanderer). Tennant, an ardent naturalist and renegade, joins an official radio-tracking project on Padre Island, Texas, but becomes impatient with its limited scope. So he launches his own boldly improvised, unsanctioned, and terribly dangerous mission in partnership with George Vose, a skilled and courageous pilot just as crazy as he is. Outfitted with deviously acquired equipment and bereft of any affiliation or permission, they set out to accompany migrating falcons in Vose's battered single-engine Cessna, flying deep into Canada and the Alaskan tundra, then south into Mexico, encountering hazards ranging from raging storms to lakes of toxic petroleum sludge to angry men with guns. An exhilarating and illuminating storyteller, Tennant offers exquisitely poetic descriptions of peregrine falcons--magnificently aerodynamic, keen-sighted, and fearless birds of prey--a galvanizing history of falconry, and a sobering accounting of the consequences of rampant chemical pollution and environmental destruction. A real roller-coaster ride, Tennant's dramatic paean to peregrines and riveting chronicle of one of the wildest wildlife studies ever conducted is powerful testimony to the need to respect and protect every aspect of life on earth. Donna Seaman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Customer Reviews

For everyone with a love of the Natural World......
This is an unusual read, it combines the raw elements of nature with the humnan story of two men determined to unravel a mystery. In parts the writing is quite beautiful. Alan Tennant manages to capture the very essence of these fantastic birds of prey and takes the reader on an amazing journey. The journey is full of events some of which are quite astonishing - read it you will not be dissapointed.