Field Notes from an Unintentional Birder: A Memoir traces one woman’s surprising journey from curious outsider to committed birder, and how that shift reshapes her understanding of home, love, and identity.

After seeing a red-winged blackbird at thirty-five, the narrator stumbles into birdwatching while navigating divorce and a career transition. What begins as a light-hearted experiment with a strange new hobby turns into a powerful way of seeing the world and her own life more clearly.

Born in the former Soviet Union, raised in Vancouver and Toronto, and later living and working across North America and in Paris, she comes to recognize herself as a kind of migratory species. Against the expectations of her Russian immigrant family, who never saw the outdoors as their domain, she learns to embrace early mornings by the water, shared field guides, and a new community of birders.

With thoughtful, often witty anecdotes, the book explores how quiet attention to birds can open doors to belonging, resilience, and a grounded sense of place in midlife.

• Blends nature writing with intimate literary memoir
• Explores migration, identity, and starting over in midlife
• Appeals to birders, nature lovers, and fans of reflective nonfiction

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