You do not have to be a bird nerd to love Forest & Bird’s new book Bird Of The Year. The Penguin publication has something for everyone – comedy, controversy, conservation, close calls, subterfuge, sabotage, international intervention, intrigue and pure passion (no, not that kind). Subtitled Twenty years of ruffled feathers: A celebration of the birds of Aotearoa, it’s reminiscent of a typical New Zealand 21st birthday party involving the retelling of entertaining incidents from birth to adulthood, sometimes embarrassing, but always shared with love.

Bird Of The Year, the book, follows the life cycle of the Bird of the Year (BOTY) contest over the last two decades, from the incubation of the idea in the offices of Forest & Bird, to  when it hatched out in 2005, as it really started to soar in 2009, and how how it migrated overseas in 2023 plus all the flights in between.

The competition may have started out as a battle of the birds for nature nerds, but over the last twenty years, it has become an integral part of Kiwi culture. The charismatic chief executive of Forest & Bird, Nicola Toki (I hope she doesn’t mind me saying), a rather endearing bird herself, sums up what BOTY has come to mean to New Zealanders: ‘If only we cared as much about the local elections as we do for Bird of the Year.’

Forest & Bird started the competition as a means of keeping the birds of Aotearoa in the public eye, especially those little-known species like the wrybill. Although Forest & Bird are involved in the serious business of kaitiaki conservation of our flora, fauna, forest and other habitats, they have embraced the frivolous and foolish of the BOTY contest, the ridiculous to the sublime, to help get New Zealand birds in the news. Often these headlines made it to overseas, including the kōkako kerfuffle, the rumoured Russian takeover, the pūteketeke palava and tinkering with Tinder for the love of a kāki/black stilt.

As someone who has been on the BOTY campaign trail in the past, I can attest that trying to wrangle votes for your chosen manu can be as intense as any All Blacks game. And sometimes things that you would never normally dream of doing, such as dressing up in a big bird suit and running around in public, can suddenly seem like a good idea.

Bird Of The Year is written by award-winning feature writer Ellen Rykers, in an easy to read, entertaining style which gently educates. The book is designed to be nibbled in bite-sized sections or consumed all at once, with the text nicely broken up by an array of amazing artwork from fifteen Aotearoa artists, as well as cartoons, campaign posters, memes, and more. The tails of fowl play will leave you gasping, the avian anecdotes will have you sighing, you will laugh at the lengths some people will go to in order to see their feathered friends win, while the occasional snippet of conservation crises may even bring a tear to your eye.

Although Bird Of The Year is not a scientific field guide, the impressive illustrations accompanying each bird could be used to identify a species. The book is split into seven habitat sections, from forest to farmland and city to sea, with 81 native birds (including a few now extinct) and their corresponding stories divided between these.

Bird Of The Year would make an ideal resident of the coffee table for dipping and diving into to enjoy an amusing interval, or equally on the bedside table to ensure you went to sleep each night with a smile on your lips. The book is a must for all school and local libraries, and at under $45 would make a great Christmas present for anyone, young or older, who has ever (or even has yet to) taken an interest in the BOTY competition.