Stanislaw Lubienski

"Everything looked perfect. Sand - unique Baltic sand, the best in the world - and the calm sea. But wait. Something was amiss. Something was wrong"It starts with a day at the beach. A single white sock that somehow spoils everything. Its enough to send writer and ornithologist Stanislaw Lubienski on a quest to understand what we throw away, where it goes and whether it will be our legacy. By analysing items he unearths on his trips into nature - a plastic bottle, a tube of Russian penis-enlargement cream, a cigarette butt, an empty aerosol can - tracing their origins and explaining the harm they can do, he shows how consumer society has developed out of control, to the point of environmental catastrophe.He also looks with a birdwatchers eye at how various animals have come to adapt to and even rely on our rubbish, and interrogates the cultural significance of waste and the origins of our throw-away lifestyles. Finally, he adds a personal touch by examining his own "environmental neurosis" and by going out with refuse crews to watch them work.While Lubienski never hectors his readers, nor shames them, his clear-eyed, persuasive and humble polemic reminds us what we, as individuals, can and cannot do to address an apocalyptic issue while theres still something worth saving.Translated from the Polish by Zosia Krasodomska-Jones

Un libro sobre el amor por las aves. Un amor que ha acompañado a su autor desde la infancia. A través de la narración, el reportaje y su propia experiencia personal, Stanislaw Lubienski realiza una exploracion brillante sobre nuestra fascinacion por las aves, y demuestra que, alzando la mirada, existe todo un mundo de sonidos, colores y significados asombrosos.

"Una mescla encantadora i suggeridora dobservació minuciosa docells i història cultural, explicada amb una perspectiva nova i refrescant." Stephen MossDes duna època immemorial, els ocells han sigut

La fascination pour les oiseaux qui accompagne l’auteur depuis son enfance (une maladie qu’il appelle Birding Compulsive Disorder) est devenue un prétexte pour écrire sur l’art, la littérature, l’his

"UNA MESCLA ENCANTADORA I SUGGERIDORA D''OBSERVACIÓ MINUCIOSA D''OCELLS I HISTÒRIA CULTURAL, EXPLICADA AMB UNA PERSPECTIVA NOVA I REFRESCANT." STEPHEN MOSS Des d''una època immemorial, els ocells han