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The Story of Birds

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What to expect

The riveting story of the dinosaurs that live among us.

A New Scientist most anticipated book of 2026

'Soaringly brilliant' – Alice Roberts

'Dinosaurs did NOT go extinct! They are all around us, and there are more of them than ever . . . in The Story of Birds, Steve Brusatte tells their amazing story with enthusiasm and brio' – Henry Gee, author of A (Very) Short History of Life on Earth

'An instant classic' – Peter Brannen, author of The Story of Co2 is the Story of Everything

'The palaeontologist and author of the thoroughly enjoyable The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs turns his attention to our feathery friends and their deep past. Even stranger than you imagined' – The Times, 'Books to look out for in 2026'

'Brusatte takes us on an eye-opening tour into the amazing world of birds . . . a thrilling addition to his hugely successful earlier books' – Venki Ramakrishnan, Nobel Prize-winning author of Why We Die

Billions of birds share the planet with us. With their flamboyant plumage and joyous dawn serenades, many of them are impossible to miss. But how did they get here, how did they break the bounds of Earth and begin to fly, and how does their legacy shape our world?

In delightfully energetic prose, expert palaeontologist Steve Brusatte takes us through their 150-million-year history, from their origins among small carnivorous dinosaurs to the 10,000-plus species that thrive today. Along the way, we meet fantastic birds from all around the world, some known only through fossils. There are elephant birds that stand as high as a basketball hoop and lay eggs as big as watermelons; demon ducks that weigh more than cows; aeroplane-sized seabirds that soar the world’s thermals; and predatory penguins the size of gorillas.

Lively, majestic and full of wonder, The Story of Birds will ensure you never see birds the same way again.

Praise for The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs:

‘Gripping’ – The Observer
‘Thrilling’ – The Sunday Times
‘A masterpiece’ – The Washington Post

Critics Review

Soaringly brilliant . . . a fascinating, scintillating flight through the history and biology of some of the most incredible creatures on our planet . . . a tour de force
Alice Roberts
Steve Brusatte takes us on an eye-opening tour into the amazing world of birds, from their origins as the living descendants of dinosaurs to their remarkable cognitive and navigational skills. A thrilling addition to his hugely successful earlier books, The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs and The Rise and Reign of the Mammals
Venki Ramakrishnan, Nobel Prize-winning author of Why We Die
An authoritative and endlessly illuminating journey through the evolution of birds -- from their dinosaur roots in the Triassic to the hummingbird at your feeder. As one of the world's top paleontologists, as well as one of the finest science communicators working today, no one is better positioned to tell this epic and surprising story than Steve Brusatte. An instant classic. Anyone interested in the story of life on Earth needs this on their bookshelf
Peter Brannen, author of The Story of Co2 is the Story of Everything
Brusatte weaves cutting-edge science and vivid storytelling to give us a breathtaking account of one of evolution's greatest survivors
Neil Shubin, author of Your Inner Fish
Brimming with surprises, The Story of Birds reveals evolution as a restless tinkerer and birds as its most radical experiment . . . The birds around us [are] living records of a history far stranger, tougher, and more inventive than we assume. Clear, incisive, and quietly surprising, The Story of Birds makes it impossible to see the natural world the same way ever again
Hakeem Oluseyi, author of A Quantum Life
A brilliant history of how birds evolved, with an astonishing insight on every page
Stephen Moss, author of Ten Birds That Changed the World
Hold the front page – dinosaurs did NOT go extinct! They are all around us, and there are more of them than ever. They tweet! They squawk! They trill! They coo! They cluck! They shriek! Yes, they are the birds, and in The Story of Birds Steve Brusatte tells their amazing story with enthusiasm and brio
Henry Gee, author of the award-winning A (Very) Short History of Life on Earth

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