Pigeons: The Fascinating Saga of the World's Most Revered and Reviled Bird

Written by Andrew D. Blechman

Narrated by Johnny Heller

A "quirky, endlessly entertaining" look at the surprising history of the pigeon (Simon Winchester).



Domesticated since the dawn of man, pigeons have been used as crucial communicators in war by every major historical superpower from ancient Egypt to the United States and are credited with saving thousands of lives. They have been worshipped as fertility goddesses and revered as symbols of peace. Charles Darwin relied heavily on pigeons to help formulate and support his theory of evolution. Yet today they are reviled as "rats with wings."



To research this lively history of the humble pigeon, the author traveled across the United States and Europe to meet with pigeon fanciers and pigeon haters in a quest to find out how we came to misunderstand one of mankind’s most helpful and steadfast companions. Pigeons captures a Brooklyn man's quest to win the Main Event (the pigeon world's equivalent of the Kentucky Derby), as well as a convention dedicated to breeding the perfect bird. The author participates in a live pigeon shoot where entrants pay $150; he tracks down Mike Tyson, the nation's most famous pigeon lover; he spends time with Queen Elizabeth's Royal Pigeon Handler; and he sheds light on a radical "pro-pigeon underground" in New York City. In Pigeons, Andrew D. Blechman reveals for the first time the remarkable story behind this seemingly unremarkable bird.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc
• Release date: Mar 18, 2025
• ISBN: 9798331948948

Reviews for Pigeons

[melissarochelle_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

An interesting look at how pigeons came to be "ew...pigeons" and we meet a few pigeon lovers (and hunters) along the way.

I would love an update on all the gentleman the author interviewed (because apparently pigeon-love skews male?). Perchance a 20th-anniversary edition is in the works -- with interviews with more women that love pigeons? And finally an interview with Mike Tyson - I would like to know more about his love of pigeons, I bet he has some fancy ones.

(I swear I've read this before and it only could've been during a short window when I worked at the library but had yet to start a goodreads account. Or I've collected a lot of pigeon knowledge in my 40 years that made this feel familiar? I do know people who raced pigeons...?)

[endrey-187836 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Documents the journey of the author from casual observer of pigeons to advocate for their ethical treatment, a short text covering a wide range of experiences and insights that happened in the course of a year spent living with a prize-winning pigeon-racer. It focuses primarily on the many different ways that people relate to the birds, how different "fringes" mold their lives around our feathered frenemies: be it to pet them, race them, shoot them, "shoo" them, endorse them or feed them with shopping carts full of seed, feed on them, the list goes on. It contextualizes these people with how the rock dove affected society historically, namely the importance of homing pigeons from antiquity up to the 1st World War, as well as with the surprisingly quick- evolving tragic tale of the passenger pigeon. And of course there's an interview with Mike Tyson, how could you go without it? His bizarrely stoic tantrum is a clear highlight of the journey.


So it's informative, but beyond that it's also exciting and an unlikely document, certainly favored by the author's background. I really need to commend his composure when tackling the subject, both in how he didn't and did allow his experiences to resonate with him. Many a time he would traverse heaven and hell to reach the stem of a story. Several of the interviewees were extremely private people, with reason or without, and the tales of how he'd get the right connections to vouch for him so he could get even a chance to speak to these enigmas, those alone were a rollercoaster and a half. And the added danger of him interviewing some people in one chapter and potentially their mortal enemies in the next, some of whom lived out in the desert, with several guns at the ready... As a kid I shuddered at the realization that the Americans in Borat weren't actors. The feeling that this book gave was similar, but with more added awe. Blechman is a fine journalist.


So he'd reach the stem of a story, and then he'd wring the story out of that stem at all costs. He manifested his willpower when repressing his biases. Even talking to utter jerks prideful of deplorable deeds, he would assume the persona that would further the wringing, the Andrew Blechman to which they'd readily confide their most private sentiments. About pigeons of course. Although the book is far from impartial, it separates Blechman's viewpoint from those of the interviewees, and their perspective appears to be accurately represented. As people confided, you can see some of them dig even deeper holes for themselves, while others grabbed onto redemption like a vine over quicksand. That's how the book was strengthened by the author's ability to distance himself from the subjects in question, it broadened the journey in a way that personal investment wouldn't have allowed.


And now to how the book was strengthened by the author's personal investment into the subject in question. This is something that's left as a surprise of sorts at the end of the book, but it recontextualizes all that you had been reading up to that point: you don't know Blechman advocates for the ethical treatment of pigeons up until the epilogue. All in one go it is revealed that Blechman wasn't an impartial observer all along, he was actually being affected by what he learned, this wasn't an exercise in "these people are weird. Look at how weird these weirdos are", the writing of Pigeons... was inadvertently a journey of enlightenment. And the implication there is that it can be a journey of
enlightenment for you too as you read it.


I didn't really think of pigeons as disease-addled skyrats before reading the book, so I don't guarantee that it would make you view these fascinating creatures in a different light, especially considering that there's probably books about how rats aren't just disease-addled groundpigeons as well. But I can assure you that in the fast, cut-throat world of Dove Lit this book rises above the rest.

[toobusyreading · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I have to admit to a fondness for pigeons. While I don't feed them, I do keep a birdbath that the pigeons, the pigeons called doves, and lots of other birds use frequently. Pigeons are actually quite fun to watch and quite beautiful, so I wanted to learn more.

Be careful of what you wish for. It took me quite a long time to read this book because I couldn't handle more than a little at a time. It's incomprehensible what we've done to this maligned bird. Even those who profess to love them, but breed for their own visions of beauty and uniqueness, even those who race them, can be incredibly cruel.

Some of the fancy breeds have been so modified they can't eat normally or feed their babies, the babes can't even peck their ways out of their shells. “They certainly wouldn't survive in the wild, but then again, they're not bred to live in the wild. They're bred to be pretty to look at.” There are pigeons that roll while flying. One of the fanciers, when asked why they roll, says, “Because they're retarded, that's why. If it was a kid, you'd put a helmet on him and stick him in a padded room.”

There are the pigeon shoots, and the feral pigeons baited and netted to provide the shoots. The organizer of one of the shoots states, “It's not that we hate pigeons. We treat them well...until they get shot.” Right. And if one of the shot pigeons manages to live, it get stuffed in a garbage bag with the dead ones. The ones that fly farther are left to die a slower death.

These cruel acts involve a fewer number of birds than plain old urban warfare on them. The favored method seems to be poisoning them, and as a side effect, poison non-targeted creatures. It is only a short term semi-solution to the problem, and there are humane ways of controlling the pigeon population when it gets out of hand. But that isn't profitable for those whose wages depend on poisoning.

I've only touched on what all this informative book contains, and I do recommend reading it. But if you have a soul, some of it will make you wonder about humanity.

[kellswitch_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Overall an interesting and accessible look at pigeons, and the culture and people around them that did better when it focused on the birds and less on the people.
In the end, I did learn a lot about pigeons, and the parts that actually deal with pigeons were really interesting. I had no idea the part they played in so much of history and culture. What I found less interesting was the odd assortment of characters the author spent so much time focusing on, and the racing. I got really tired of the racing storyline.

[glade1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This really is a "fascinating" book. It looks at many aspects of the relationship of humans with pigeons, including a historical perspective (especially interesting is their use for communication in war and commerce) and information on racing pigeons, showing pigeons, shooting pigeons, dining on pigeons, and fights to exterminate and to save pigeons. They really are remarkable birds and have only come to be detested in recent years, as their large city populations have caused the nuisance of lots of pigeon droppings.

Reading this book made me look around my city and wonder where all the pigeons have gone. I fear some dire fate has befallen them, because I do not see them around sidewalks and parking decks anymore. It took this book to make me notice that and miss them. I'll have to look into it...

The one thing I think is missing from this book is illustrations. Photos and/or drawings would have supplemented the author's descriptions of various birds and breeds. But overall, it is a worthy read.

[satyridae · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Interesting but not gripping. I wish there were half stars, because this book falls somewhere between 2 & 3 for me. The author is more interested in the people than the birds. I was hoping for more about the birds. I did learn that pigeons aren't nearly the vermin we are taught to think of them as.

[maggiereads · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The book claims either you love them or you hate them. I would have to say, before my Italian trip, I was indifferent. It took a couple of days in San Marco Square to knock me off the fence. After watching them huddle around diners and rush anyone chewing, I quickly surmised they were icky. Pigeons otherwise known as rats with feathers made my skin crawl.

This weekend my whole attitude changed after reading Pigeons by Andrew D. Blechman. He has written a fascinating, I kid you not, book about these common birds. His tone is light and humorous with interesting stories to lure the reader. The introduction leads with an anonymous quote, “Some days you’re the pigeon. Some days you’re the statue.” Amen.

My heart was won after reading the story of the “Lost Battalion” of World War One. Apparently the 77th Division of the U.S. Army was trapped behind German lines in the Argonne Forest. Overnight, their division numbers dwindled to 200, and as the day began they were bombarded with friendly fire from 25 miles away.

Faced with sure death and no way to communicate with friendly forces, they brought out their rock doves. This battalion, such as the habit of Army foot soldiers, carried baskets of rock doves into battle with them. The first two feathered scouts were shot down by the Germans before ever orienting to their home base.

The third, Cher Ami, carried a desperate plea, “Our artillery is dropping a barrage on us. For Heaven’s sake, stop it!” Vulnerable to the rifle shots as the first two birds, Cher Ami headed back down to earth, but before impact he pushed out his wings and caught a gust of air. He climbed, then climbed some more, and to the amazement of the soldiers he flew out of rifle range.

Twenty minutes later, a blood covered Cher Ami lay on his back at headquarters. “One eye and part of the cranium had been blown away, and its breast had been ripped open.” He lived another year and was awarded the French Croix de Guerre for his “courageous persistence.” (His mangled-stuffed body can be seen at the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C.)

Yes, you may not think this is a potboiler and you may think I’m a crackpot for suggesting it, but I do hope you give it a try. Oh, and if you don’t fall in love with these fine-feathered friends, Blechman includes a Pigeon Pot Pie recipe.

[cadillacrazy · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is an interesting book about the world of pigeons. The author writes about the people who love (and hate) pigeons in a way that makes you think he can't stand any of them.