Lee's Library

I started reading this on the recommendation of several animal loving friends. I must admit to feeling some trepidation after reading a blurb about the thousands of mice the author had to kill in order to feed Wesley over an almost 20 year period. However, I was definitely interested in knowing more about these beautiful and mysterious, nocturnal creatures.

The author writes with an engaging and very readable style. Her anecdotes of daily life with a newly adopted 4 day old, orphaned and nerve damaged owlet are fascinating. I especially loved the stories where she relates the many verbal and non-verbal communications that developed between the two over time. Reading about Wesley’s deep bond with Stacey, his playful antics and intelligence was highly entertaining. The book contains several beautiful photos of Wesley including one of him completely submersed in a bath which is very unusual behaviour for an owl.

If you are interested in owls or even just reading an unusual story of human-non-human relationships then I highly recommend Wesley the Owl: The Remarkable Love Story of an Owl and His Girl. While I didn’t always agree with some of the author’s attitudes, her special relationship with Wesley the owl and the commitment she made in caring for him was truly moving.

December 2011