H is for Hawk is Helen Macdonald’s memoir. After Helen’s father passed away, she decided to get a goshawk. She had always been hawk crazy and had previously said she would never get a goshawk as they are notoriously “hard-headed,” unforgiving of mistakes, and can become aggressive if not properly trained. When she meets up with the breeder, he shows her the wrong bird first and somehow Helen connected to that bird. She asked him to swap the birds as she was intent on keeping the one he showed her first.
It seems the two had an instant connection. Helen describes how she went about getting Mabel (the bird) used to her, and to the glove and even to wearing a hood. Helen also describes how an author (TH White) had made many mistakes training his goshawk which he described in a book. Helen was determined not to make those mistakes!
I really enjoyed this book – I’m a big fan of birds of prey and owls myself so this was right up my street!
Read for the PopSugar Reading Challenge 2026
Prompt 45: A book that features birding
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️