I didn't get any new bird books as gifts, but I did get the three-CD set
"Catalogue of the Birds" by Olivier Messiaen. French composer Messiaen
loved birdsong, and incorporated his interpretations of it into much of
his music. (The beautiful and mystical "Quartet for the End of Time",
probably his most well-known work, written in a concentration camp
during WWII, includes a movement called "Abyss of the Birds".) In
"Catalogue of the Birds", a piece for solo piano he wrote in the 1970's,
each of the thirteen sections represents a different species. The music
is somewhat challenging, but it's quite wonderful. If you like
contemporary "classical" music, I really recommend it.

Rachel Lawson
Seattle