The Colored Atlas of Lovebirds

Subtitled "Agapornis: More than a Hobby, A Passion!"
Price: $20.97
Hardcover, 192 pages. Published June 1997 by Tfh Publications.

A must-have for aficionados of these feisty little African parrots.  An excellent choice for anyone interested in the various color mutations of lovebirds. Loads of photos and detailed information on the genetics of mutations.  It has a nifty guide on how to tell a bird's color when it's still a little baby fluff ball!  For example, a 2-day-old creamino will have red eyes, ochre beak, dull white down, and yellowish salmon skin while a 2-day-old green orangeface will have dark eyes, grayish black beak, orange down, and light orange skin!

Best New Bird Book of 1999!
Companion Parrot Handbook
by Sally Blanchard
Price: $39.95
Published April 1999 by the Pet Bird Information Center

Finally!  A book from one of the most sought-after avian behaviorists in the United States.  Sally Blanchard has been writing a behavioral column for Bird Talk Magazine for many years. Her advice and expertise in this area have made her one of the most popular speakers on the pet bird club and show circuits. She bases her recommendations on an underlying notion of nuturing guidance. This book is a must-have for anyone who owns a parrot, but most important, for anyone CONSIDERING buying a parrot.  You can prevent behavioral problems if you are prepared from the outset to properly socialize your bird. Many people think a bird is socialized just during the few weeks or months of handfeeding, but this is an ongoing process. A growing young bird needs proper guidance to live happily with your "flock."  If you buy one book this year on bird behavior, make this the one!

Guide to Companion Parrot Behavior
by Mattie Sue Athan
Price: $9.56
Paperback, 232 pages. Published April 1999 by Barron's Educational Series.

Excellent guide to parrot behavior. I am thrilled that more of these books are available. Just a few years ago, they were hard to come by.  Socializing your pet parrot requires education, patience, and understanding. This book will give you guidelines and some very sage advice about how to deal with particular behavioral issues. In my opinion, you can't read too many books on pet bird behavior! 

The Pleasure of Their Company: 
An Owner's Guide to Parrot Training
By Bonnie Munro Doane, Richard Cole
Price: $19.57
Hardcover, 216 pages. Published in May 1998 by Macmillan

Once and a while a truly excellent book on parrots is published. Here is that once-and-a-while book. "The Pleasure of Their Company" is, in a word, parroterrific!  In the last year or so I've had some terrible behavioral issues develop with my 4-year-old Senegal, Maxwell.  Often when birds reach sexual maturity territoriality and aggressiveness can increase exponentially. If you've made mistakes in training your young bird, you can bet you'll have problems when the bird reaches full adulthood. I wish I'd had this book 4 years ago when I first brought home my darling baby senegal.  The author pulls no punches, reminding us that our birds depend on us for guidance and that we are ultimately responsible for their behavior. This is a book that will help newcomers who are already spoiling their weanlings and old-timers who are now reaping the consequences of having spoiled their birds for years. The advice is so excellent I'm reassessing everything I do with my young bluefront amazon BEFORE she gets into trouble! She's 2 years old now...I think I've caught it in time ;-)

"Pleasure of Their Company" focuses on specific training exercises that will improve current behavior and prevent future behavioral issues.  It includes the latest information on parrot psychology, an area of aviculture that has grown enormously in recent years.  If more people read books like this, there would be fewer abandoned parrots out there on the adoption merry-go-round! If you can only afford ONE BOOK on birds THIS IS THE BOOK TO BUY!

Parrots: A Guide to Parrots of the World
Price: $38.50 WOW! AMAZING LOW PRICE!
Hardcover, 580 pages. Published March 1998 by Yale University Press

The most recent ultimate guide for parrot lovers. Covers all the species, with an emphasis on field identification of parrots. Cockatoos, macaws, parakeets, lovebirds, budgies, and more.  This is one of those definitive texts every bird lover should have in their home! And the price cannot be beat!

The Complete Bird Owner's Handbook
by Gary A. Gallerstein, Heather Acker
Price: $19.25
Hardcover - 320 pages New edition (July 1994)
Howell Book House; ISBN: 0876059035 ; Dimensions (in inches): 1.15 x 9.55 x 6.43

An excellent book for those who own companion birds. It's vet stuff for laymen, and will provide you with invaluable information about your bird's health and well-being. Any house with birds needs a good guide to their health to prevent serious disease and illness that could easily be treated if recognized on time.

The Wheatgrass Book

By Ann Wigmore
Price: $7.16
Paperback, 126 pages.  Published July 1986 by Avery Publishing Group

This is the bible of wheatgrass!  Learn everything you need to know about the world's most perfect food and its miracle healing properties.  This is a must-have for anyone interested in this health food for birds (and humans, of course). In my opinion, wheatgrass is the most powerful (and natural) preventative measure available against bacterial infections in parrots, especially important when breeding.  It improves the color of your birds and has been PROVEN to improve fertility in certain animals in scientific studies.

Common Poisonous Plants and Mushrooms of North America

by Nancy J. Turner and Adam F. Szczawinski
Price: $19.96
Paperback reprint edition. Published April 1995 by Timber Pr.

Photographs and pointers to identify poisonous plants quickly.  Important text for anyone with young children or companion birds.