Unseen city:
The Majesty of Pigeons, the Discreet Charm of Snails & Other Wonders of the Urban Wilderness
by
Nathanael Johnson
Perfect airplane/boat/train/[your choice here] reading. Light, short, and engaging; plus and you get to learn the mathematical pattern of a snail's shell, the reason pigeons usually have deformed feet, and the appeal of stinky ginkgo trees.
Warn your co-travelers before starting--you're going to be interrupting them with annoying informational tidbits. You'll become the "Did you know...?" bore in the break room. I didn't read it while traveling but I did sneak it in during restroom trips at work. In this way I spared my coworkers the "did you know...?" interruption; they would have caught on if every time I returned from the restroom I was determined to share a new, enticing tidbit.
He has one important point to make. Why do we revere the natural world only when it occurs far away from human habitation? Shouldn't we give a glance or two of admiration for the plants and animals that learn to live with us? They're pretty smart, you know, to figure out what humans are up to and stay out of their way while getting on with their own lives. Or sometimes, to even wheedle what they want out of us.
One thing for sure--you'll never again tee off a crow.
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