"Stotts's gift for storytelling, as an educator and public speaker, is on full display in this remarkable memoir; it's thought-provoking, moving, and inspiring." - starred review
Library Journal
"The book is embellished with impressive photographs that capture the beautiful relationships between Stotts and his bird friends. The loving relationship that can be cultivated between humans and the amazing birds is shown through charming moments between the birds and Stotts's audience, too. Bird Brother is a memoir that is apt in its demonstration of nature's ability to transform people."
Foreword Reviews
"Humanity and hawks. The lines between two-legged and taloned blur beautifully in Bird Brother. Rodney Stotts' life is more than a story of man and nature, it is a no holds barred bittersweet odyssey; the much-needed, uplifted, uniquely-hued heroic epic of a determined soul who through a love of wild birds, delivers a heart-rending lesson in how grounded possibilities can soar beyond perception. There is no more powerfully positive sign of these times than a hawk on Rodney's raised fist."
J. Drew Lanham, cultural & conservation ornithologist, birder, and author of "The Home Place: Memoirs of a Colored Man's Love Affair with Nature"
"My overwhelming refrain to Rodney Stotts is 'thank you.' His story, and the pictures he paints as he tells it, are the most incredible demonstration of the substance of hope. He beautifully captures the complex, and often visceral, nature of finding life within death through the liberation that comes with 'looking up.'"
Corina Newsome, ornithologist and environmental activist
"Rodney Stotts' story is a tremendously moving tribute to the power of birds to transform a life. Searingly honest, Bird Brother is a love letter to the avian world from a fiercely dedicated master falconer and tireless conservationist who not only does the work-no matter how unglamorous-but also inspires others to see the beauty of nature and find their place within it."
Julia Zarankin, author of "Field Notes from an Unintentional Birder"
"A gripping memoir that will leave readers looking to the sky...A powerful Black voice in the predominantly white canon of nature writing,... His book is filled with hope, love, and the importance of second chances-for injured birds and humans alike."
Urban Audubon
"Keeping birds of prey is never easy, as anyone who has read other falconry books knows. But Stotts dealt with a particularly tough road,shadowed by incarceration, the deaths of family and friends, and racism....Particularly inspirational is Stotts teaching his own son to be a falconer."
Cool Green Science
"If you've loved H is for Hawk or any sort of memoir that intersects with nature, you'll like this one!"
Smart Bitches Trashy Books
"It's amazing and inspiring to read about someone with such commitment to honoring the wild dreams of his childhood."
Book Riot
"Stotts' journey of self-discovery is an astonishing and heart-warming account that will stay with you long after you have finished reading it."
City Book Review
"This was an inspiring read, not only as a fellow Black man with a love for helping others and caring for the environment, but also as someone who has dealt with obstacle after obstacle, yet still finds the hope to remain determined and joyful as I pursue my goal."
Birding Magazine | American Birding Association
"This book is about so much more than birds. Rodney Stotts-one of the few Black master falconers in the country-recalls how his passion for birds of prey transformed his life. It's an ode to both human strength and resilience and the powerful bond between people and animals."
Mental Floss
"Stott's uplifting memoir demonstrates both the healing power of nature and the capacity we all have to overcome hardship and pursue our dreams."
Free Lance-Star
"Bird Brother is a very personal story of hope, redemption and sheer guts . What really comes across in this book is Stotts' love of what he does and the constructive role that nature has played in his life journey."
Biologist
"While the book gives some bird lessons, it is more of a life lesson. It's an inspiration to any nature lover, full of ever-expanding dreams that soar as high as an eagle."
Wildlife Activist
