Beginning the sixth year of our Readin' Vegans book club, on January 26 we'll have a Zoom discussion of MOZART'S STARLING, BY Lyanda Lynn Haupt (Little Brown, 2017). You need not have attended a previous discussion to join us for this one. We'll discuss the book until about 8:30, followed by open conversation.

The Zoom link to the discussion is posted on the right, visible to those who RSVP. You will need a computer, laptop, smartphone or other device with internet access. It's pretty easy; if you're curious, check out https://zoom.us/. We'll be available from 6:50 on to help anyone who might need extra time to connect. If you can't get on, call us at 303-300-2368. We hope to "see" you there!

If you'd like to read ahead: for our February meeting, we'll discuss HOMO AHIMSA by Judy McCoy Carman.
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On May 27th, 1784, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart met a flirtatious little starling in a Viennese shop who sang an improvised version of the theme from his Piano Concerto no. 17 in G major. Sensing a kindred spirit in the plucky young bird, Mozart bought him and took him home to be a family pet. For three years, the starling lived with Mozart, influencing his work and serving as his companion, distraction, consolation, and muse.

In MOZART'S STARLING, Haupt explores the unlikely and remarkable bond between one of history's most cherished composers and one of earth's most common birds. The intertwined stories of Mozart's beloved pet and Haupt's own starling provide an unexpected window into human-animal friendships, music, the secret world of starlings, and the nature of creative inspiration. A blend of natural history, biography, and memoir, Mozart's Starling is a tour de force that awakens a surprising new awareness of our place in the world.

Lyanda Lynn Haupt has created and directed educational programs for Seattle Audubon, worked in raptor rehabilitation in Vermont, and as a seabird researcher for the Fish and Wildlife Service in the remote tropical Pacific.

"This hard-to-put-down, charming blend of science, biography, and memoir illuminating the little-known story of the composer and his beloved bird is enlivened by the immediacy of Haupt's tales of Carmen, and brimming with starling information, travelogues, and historical details about Mozart's Vienna."―Booklist (Starred Review)

"Weaving together cheerful memoir, natural history, and biography, the author celebrates her 'insatiably social' pet starling, Carmen; investigates Mozart's experience with his avian companion... and offers intriguing details about starling behavior."―Kirkus Reviews