In this extraordinary narrative, Alan Tennant, a passionate observer of nature, recounts his all-out effort to radio-track the transcontinental migration of the peregrine falcon--an investigation no one before him had ever taken to such lengths. On the Wing transports us from the windswept flats of the Texas barrier islands--where the tundra falcons pause during their springtime journey north--to the Arctic, and then back south, through Mexico, Belize, and into the Caribbean, in a hilariously picaresque and bumpy flight. At the helm is Tennant's partner in falcon-chasing, George Vose, a septuagenarian World War II vet who trusts his instincts as much as his instruments. As the two men nearly lose their lives and run afoul of the law in the race to keep their birds in view and their rattletrap Cessna gassed up and running, Tennant renders with gorgeous precision and skill the landscape and wildlife they pass on the way and the falcons that direct their course. On the Wing is a breathtaking encounter with these majestic birds--the icons of pharaohs, Oriental emperors, and European nobility--whose fierce mien, power, and swiftness have fired the human imagination for centuries. An unforgettable and mesmerizing tale that speaks to all our dreams of flight. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.

Naturalist Tennant (The Guadalupe Mountains of Texas) describes his efforts to trail peregrine falcons on their epic migratory flights from the Caribbean to the Arctic in a detailed, impassioned account that's part nature study and part gonzo travelogue. After radio-tagging a young peregrine off the coast of Texas, Tennant teams up with George Vose, a former WWII combat flight instructor, to follow the bird on its spring migration north. Plenty of excitement run-ins with Canadian Mounties, trouble with Vose's battered plane follows as the men track their "guiding angel," the bird they name Amelia. After a trip to the peregrine's Alaskan breeding grounds, Tennant and Vose follow three new peregrines on the fall migration down the coast of Mexico and Central America, where their adventures include going into a free-fall over the Caribbean Ocean and being mistaken for DEA agents. Tennant pauses to consider nearly every creature he encounters along the way, from polar bear to insect, describing its connection to the land, and, in the inevitable bittersweet turn, revealing the environmental degradation that threatens its survival. With a nature-lover's deep concern rather than an ideologue's rhetoric, Tennant emphasizes the connection between man and beast, reflecting as well on his own need for migration and adventure. 8-page color insert not seen by PW. Agent, David McCormick. (Sept.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

Attempting to radio-track the migratory patterns of the Arctic Peregrine Falcon, Tennant (Snakes of North America) and his pilot, George Vose, trail by beat-up Cessna a young female falcon's springtime journey "home" to the far North; in the second half of the book, they attempt to follow three falcons south to their winter range in Central America. The human behavior exhibited here is only slightly less entertaining than the avian. Tennant and Vose will do anything to get the story, including traveling into Canadian airspace sans landing permits, donning fake highway patrol uniforms to fool the Mexican authorities, and using false research institute credentials to get necessary radio equipment. By turns comic and frightening, the book is also ultimately sad, set as it is "within the larger context of disaster"Athe myriad threats to the recovering yet still vulnerable peregrine population and the declining numbers of its prey birds. Read this book for a deeper appreciation of this majestic bird; read it to become indeed "part of the continent's ancient river of migration." Highly recommended. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 5/1/04.]ARobert Eagan, Windsor P.L., Ont. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

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