Early in 2004, a National Guardsman from Connecticut arrived in Iraq for a year's posting. From nearly day one until he left Iraq, Trouern-Trend wrote about his bird sightings in an on-line journal. The highlights of his "Birding Babylon" blog are collected in this volume, designed to resemble a birder's journal.
This little book cuts through the politics of war like birdsong, reminding us of our imperishable connection with nature; of how birds and their journeys tie the world together; of the persistence of life even in a wasted land.
Jonathan Trouern-Trend served with the 118th Area Support Medical Battalion in Iraq and currently works for the American Red Cross Blood Services in their Epidemiology and Surveillance program. He lives in Marlborough, Connecticut, with his wife and their five children