This book is the product of a decade-long conversation with Franz Goller, who gave me space in his birdsong laboratory, and shared with me the mysteries, discoveries and troubles around communication. The sketches in the book are his.
For Joie Smith, who talked with me for over twenty years, and with whom I continue talking every day. I also thank Don Feener, always. To Lynn Kilpatrick, who originally pushed me to do more with a short story about birds, and to the readers who commented on multiple drafts: Frances Torti, Debra Baldwin, Cass McNally, Ellen Wilson, Lynn Cohne, Deborah Threedy, Julia Corbett, Franz Goller, Krista Caballero, Trudi Smith and Calvin Jolley.
Tim Schaffner, editor and publisher extraordinaire, saw the book’s potential and prodded it on to something much better. Thank you, as well, to: Sean Murphy, Jordan Wannemacher, Scott Manning, and Abigail Welhouse.
For support, I thank Centre d’Art i Natura, Farrera, Spain, and Mapping Meaning. Finally, gratitude and love to Calvin for his raw, naked and ardent attention to detail on and off the page.