The Goshawk

In 1952 T. H. White was the author of The Sword in the Stone (Essential Modern Classics) and Mistress Masham's Repose. White's researches for "Sword" inspired him to learn the art of falconry. Gos was an untamed tiercel (male) of the largest European species of the short-winged hawks with a wing spread three inches shorter than a golden eagle. White lived in a cottage in Buckinghamshire wood, and he ordered the bird from a dealer in Germany. White spends hours trying to dominate Gos, and eventually the endeavor ends in tragedy for Gos. Along the way, White describes the appeal of this ancient sport. It can be very instructive to compare White's experiences with those described by Tim Gallagher in Falcon Fever: A Falconer in the Twenty-first Century. Another useful book on the subject is A Rage for Falcons by by Stephen Bodio; Bodio's insights on the Goshawk are particularly interesting. Marie Winn has written the introduction. She is a wonderful observer of wildlife, writes an excellent blog called "Marie Winn's Central Park Nature News", and is the author of the enchanting Red-Tails in Love: A Wildlife Drama in Central Park (Vintage Departures). I share other reviewers's concerns that Winn was not entirely fair to White. As a non-hunting observer of wildlife I empathize with her point of view, but can "Sha-hou" ringing down the centuries be entirely wrong? I've attached a favorable review that appeared in "Time" when the book first appeared in 1952. I was delighted to find this new and well produced edition of White's classic book. Robert C. Ross 2008

As a fan of The Once and Future King as well as falconry, I couldn't wait to start reading this book. It is an absolute gem. White's descriptions are extremely vivid. No one should be daunted by the fact that this book was penned in '51 or that it is about falconry; his story is immensely (and enjoyably) readable.

Thanks are due to New York Review Books for putting back in print this wonderful book. The edition is well produced. A quibble is that Marie Winn who writes the introduction is clearly not familiar with ,or comfortable with ,"field sports". T H White (and many modern writers and followers of fishing,falconry and related actities) would take issue with her distinction between being a natural history lover and a practioner of fishing,shooting,ferreting etc. More seriously, she writes that White "blithely snagged salmon". White fished for salmon and caught them fairly using a fly. He wrote many fine passages about his salmon fishing and the pieces are still found in anthologies of fishing literature. To "snag" a salmon means ,to those who fish ,that he took salmon illegally and unsportingly, by jerking a hook into the body of a salmon.There is no evidence that I have heard of that he would ever have done this.To suggest it does his memory a grave disservice. The introduction by Steve Bodio,himself a falconer, to the 1996 Wilder Places edition of The Goshawk is,to my mind, far better at exploring and explaining the reasons why this is a much loved book.

I highly recommend this book to anyone, even those with no interest at all in falconry. The author is so skilled and talented that I'd say that he could write an entertaining piece about paint drying. Enjoy!!

Mr. White describes his experiences with training a goshawk for falconry. He has no guidance beyond an ancient manuscript and things go horribly awry. An outstanding book, a pleasure to read. Also an example of why current US regulations require a falconry apprenticeship period.