The Secret Islands

This is a magically well-written ornithological binge in flight from civilization by the author of Argen The Gull and Watchers at the Pond. New Zealand born Russell too long caged on Manhattan longs to visit some remote islands. He finds them off the coast of Newfoundland almost solely inhabited by gulls petrels and near-relatives of the great auk. Although he is physically stimulated by the outdoor life he is also plunged into exhausting speculation about the meaning of life and death in the natural orders...Russell''s wasteland scenery is climactic effective and this is natural history with philosophical overtones. - Kirkus Review