It’s a Peregrine Falcon. An odd word, peregrine. But bird names are gonna be what they’re gonna be. Peregrine means “wanderer” and that’s okay. Although you could apply it to most birds, creatures with wings and whims.
So where does “magic” come in? There’s a novel—written by one of our own, the author of much of our two-fisted birdwatcher stuff—and we’ve mentioned it on the site, most recently in “Two-Fisted Library.” (It’s called “The Idea People,” and Amazon gives a rundown about the details.)
We’re not normally into recommending books, especially those from our own keyboards. But this one has a ton of two-fisted fun. And birds make some pretty interesting appearances, so it would be weirdly wrong to not turn you on to it.
One bird in a key (and possibly criminal?) role is a Peregrine Falcon. Is it magic? Not in the book—but on a hill outside of New York there was a kind of magic moment involving a non-fictional Peregrine, the book, and a friend of ours.
True story: we gave “The Idea People” to this friend, a guy who rarely reads novels. But he politely accepted it. As these things happen, the book sat unlooked-at for months. Then one day not long ago he wanted to get away from the city. He went for a hike in mountains a few hours out of New York. He took the book. Maybe he’d find a peaceful spot to sit and read a bit.
That’s what he did, and soon got into the story. He was at the part where a Peregrine Falcon drops out of the sky near a woman who had recently become lost in the wilds of the Colorado Rockies.
Then this happened:
A real-life Peregrine Falcon descended out of nowhere and perched on a rock near him. Magically, this coincided with the bird in the book showing up, too. The guy stopped reading. This was unreal.
Like most New Yorkers he could recognize a Peregrine because they make news there, hanging around tall buildings. Dark cheeks, sleek falcon form, brutal beak, spunky attitude, all that. The bird settled nearby and stared at him. Uncommon behavior for any bird, but especially a wild predator who likes to avoid humans.
And this happened while the guy was holding a book about a wild Peregrine who interacts in a surprising way with human characters in the mystery. The guy was amazed at this coincidence. He grabbed a photo of the bird with his phone.
The fact that this really happened is confounding, crazy, seemingly magical. At least that’s what the guy thought when he told us about it and sent his photo. He eventually finished the novel with new interest. Did he like it? He added a review on Amazon, but that’s his business.
We’re still marveling over his sighting that day in high country not far from New York City—and even though his photo is not pro-quality, it’s got a cool story to go with it. Man, what are the odds!
Sitting alone on a wild mountain with a good book is my thing. Being joined by an actual falcon at the same time is amazing luck. Or, as you imply, maybe something else? Thanks for making my day!
Leave it to a notable novelist like Marc Davis to link our falcon to Dashiell Hammett’s 1930 novel (later made into a classic movie). Maybe Sam Spade’s encounter with his famous falcon had some magic in it, too.
Majestic for sure….oh, by the way—-read the book. Outstanding.
“The Idea People” will keep you turning pages. A captivating story that marries noir to nature, with a memorable cast of characters both nasty and nice. As for falcons, here’s what Gutman said to Spade in “The Maltese Falcon,” referring to that legendary statuette: “…Not an insignificant live bird, but a glorious golden falcon encrusted from head to foot with the finest jewels…”.