Utterly delightful! This is a wonderful book that delves into what the nightingale signifies in folklore, music, poetry and ancient history, as well as what we can do to protect its habitat. I've been fascinated by the nightingale since reading Marie de France's lais, Laüstic, so was really excited to read this and wasn't disappointed. It's well written and contains beautiful pictures and illustrations that really bring what the writer says to life. There are so many topics and so many texts mentioned that there were a few parts where I felt slightly overwhelmed and wanted to pause, but this certainly wasn't the case throughout. The lengthy fable about the emperor, and the section on Beatrice Harrison were my favourite parts - I finished both parts feeling a lovely sense of calm. Overall, a really informative and peaceful read.

I really enjoyed aspects of this book. The history of the nightingale was fascinating and detailed, as was the information on its migration and habitats. I didn't enjoy the sections full of songs and poems, and the end was not really to my taste - it became quite political (almost a manifesto) rather than solely sticking to history/nature. If that's what you were expecting, fine, but it wasn't really that engrossing to me.

5 stars for the history and migration info! 2 stars for the rest.