“What makes this big-year book different is the father-son bonding element . . . the picture of a teenager that emerges has the ring of truth. A proficient storyteller, Collard writes with style about their travels together . . .” —Kirkus Reviews

Catch Sneed’s upcoming book events (also see list to the right)

I am happy to announce the release of my very first adult book, Warblers and Woodpeckers: A Father-Son Big Year of Birding from Seattle-based Mountaineers Books. “But wait a minute!” some of you might be asking, “What the heck is a Big Year?” As most avid birders can tell you, a Big Year is a birder’s attempt to see as many species as possible in a calendar year in a specified area—usually the ABA Region which, with the recent addition of Hawai’i, is now defined as the fifty U.S. states and Canada.

Braden at Anahuac NWR during our epic Big Year trip to Texas.

My new book documents Braden’s and my Big Year of 2016, a year which saw the ABA Big Year record shattered. No, we didn’t shatter the record. While semi-professional birders criss-crossed the country in pursuit of more than 780 bird species, Braden and I set much more modest goals. We simply wanted to see as many birds as we could on our very limited budget. Still, our year was filled with adventure, humor, terror, and yes, birds. Here’s what the recent book review in Kirkus magazine has to say:

“What makes this big-year book different is the father-son bonding element. A proficient storyteller, Collard writes with style about their travels together in 2016 around Montana, where the author lives (Missoula), and to Arizona, Texas, and California…”

Some of the highlights of our Big Year included seeing extreme rarities such as a Tufted Flycatcher and California Condors; getting attacked by killer bees in Arizona; surviving a hundred-year flood in Texas; and meeting other birders everywhere we went.

Seeing California Condors flying free was a moment of a lifetime and one of the highlights of our Big Year adventure.

How many species did we see? Well, you’ll have to read the book to find out, but doing a Big Year is something Braden and I highly recommend to beginning and advanced birders alike. Not only does it teach you to be a much better birder, but you discover spectacular nooks and crannies of our nation that you might never ever visit if it weren’t for the pursuit of birds.

Meanwhile, I hope that some of you can catch me at my signing events in the next two months. A complete schedule is listed to the right. Thanks for reading, and keep birding!

Order Warblers and Woodpeckers now!