"What a strange hobby!" people said, when they heard that John James Audubon spent months in the woods—studying and sketching birds. And, in the early 1800's, it was strange for a man to enter the forests with a sketch pad instead of a hunting knife.

For although John Audubon ran a frontier store and even taught dancing to support his family, his real home was in the woods, where he observed birds in their natural setting. And when, finally, his collection of drawings was printed, Audubon could share with everyone the wonders of bird life he had discovered in the forests of America.

From his childhood in France until his death in New York City, here is the artist whose paintings are admired the world over, and whose love of nature has inspired thousands to study and help preserve bird life.

This is the second book in Catherine Owens Peare's biographical series on the men and women who are part of our American Heritage of Arts. Again, as in her Stephen Foster, Miss Peare tells with simplicity and sensitive understanding the story of a great man.

From the dust jacket