I requested this one based only on the blurb. I have never heard of the birds are not real movement until now.

I have been converted.

I am all in.

I am also able to laugh at the absurdity of people falling for some of the way out there theories.

This is not a "story" so I cannot review it that way, but if you want to have a good idea of how one can easily fall into some of the "how in the world did they get there" then this is the book for you.

My favorite part was pumpkinhead. Now it all makes sense to me.

Fun to begin with, but just kind of weird as it goes on. And all of a sudden you feel like you're promoting the right wing (haha wing) agenda simply by reading this book that was meant to be a spoof but will most likely be used against us in court someday.

Birds aren’t real: it’s right there in the title. They convinced me. Birds are clearly a conspiracy. Evidence is overwhelming. I’m a believer.

This book was kind of funny. It was definitely well laid out in a way that you could follow through and see how birds aren’t real. It was laid out how each bird was changed to not be real. It went through each president and their role in this scheme against the public.

Then how to fight back against the politicians. It was definitely funny not parts and a great call to arms.

I would say this book was cute.

3/5 stars,

I love a good conspiracy theory, especially one as silly as this one. It's a funny read if you can find humor in the bit. If you're not easily amused then this is not the book for you. It goes into depth about the start of the conspiracy theory and some thoughts on continuing the movement.

Thank you St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the advance reader copy. This is my honest review.

This is a*very* tongue in cheek and sarcastic look at American conspiracy theories and the people who fall for them. And while I did find parts rather hilarious, I think this type of story would be better formatted as a collection of short stories instead of a full-fledged book.

Birds Aren't Real was published June 4, 2024. Thank you to St. Martin's Press, NetGalley and the author for the digital advanced copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This book had moments that were hilarious, but other times it felt like it was stuck in a loop telling the same thing with different words. If you enjoy satire and are intrigued about American conspiracy theories then you will enjoy this book. Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC!

This was a very different book. They propose that there are no live birds anymore. They propose that all birds have been killed by the CIA and they have all been replaced by drones so that they can all be used for surveillance. I know, it seems WAY out there, but it is a theory and they make some interesting points. If you want to read a book that will challenge your beliefs, this is the book.

Birds Aren't Real by Peter McIndoe and Connor Gaydos was received directly from the publisher and I chose to review it. I had never heard of this conspiracy theory before so I went into this book expecting to hate it due to a "nutjob" book. What I found was a funny book that was like a long stand-up comedy routine. Did it get "old" at times? Yes, indeed it did; however, skimming was easy until I found portions that were a new topic. While this book is satire (yes it is), with the way things are going nowadays it is not crazy talk for people to think it could maybe be true. If you or someone you buy gifts for like a satirical look at an off-the-wall conspiracy theory, certainly give this book a read.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this ARC.

Have I found the Birds Aren't Real online conspiracy mongering fun? Yes. Did I find that spread out over a 270ish page book a little thin? Also yes.

Honestly, I was hoping for a little more behind-the-scenes "here's why we did this, here's what we learned amidst all the silliness here", and this was more of a brand extension exercise. I'm not the audience here! You might have more fun.

I thought this was hilarious. I was in for a good laugh. Clever and well-thought out. I think anyone looking to be entertained, satire and all, and those who like to challenge their knowledge of world facts and history will enjoy this one. Will make a fabulous read for book club, graduation, birthday, and Father's Day gift.

I would like to thank St. Martin’s Press for providing me with an advance readers copy via access to the galley for free through the NetGalley program.

<b>The Story</b>
I laughed so hard at all of the detail and quirks in this one.

From the charging stations, the description of The Great Rebellion, the establishment of The Thirteen Colonies into the American Empire. The inventions. The summary biographies of U.S. presidents. The Thanksgiving prayer. Pardoning. The dialogue. Recordings. The sit-reps.

A bit of telling of history and plausible interconnectivity to the operation. The source material. Multi-layered satire. It just kept going and going, and I was happy to read all about it.

I did end up spending a great deal of time reading through the Reagan Doctrine, from Nicaragua to Soviet influence and ally formation, the notable operation Contra, then reflecting back to the Nintendo video game and all the levels, thinking, I wonder the sourcing for inspiration? Though I could not confirm. But before I knew it I watching play throughs, looking for any potential hidden symbolism.

<b>The Writing</b>
The word find and quiz, added so much character to the book.

I loved the sketch illustrations.

I think for 116 pages, it’s a fun book to read if you’re looking for a good laugh or an in-between heavy book endeavor.

And how to shelve it, whether fiction or nonfiction? By critique in its own right, it's not untrue or fantasy imaginative, or conspiratorial in its inquiry and presentation, or from the premise of speculative opinion, or is it?

<a href="https://wp.me/p9BAP8-9Ox">Blog post</a>

DNF. I think there is a very specific audience for this book... Unfortunately, it doesn't include me. Going into it, I was hoping for an in depth, non biased look into the conspiracy and the viewpoints of those that follow this belief. However, this book uses the history as a vehicle to make digs at the conspiracy and those that follow it. It reads more like a really long stand up routine with mildly amusing jabs at the audience. While I'm not a subscriber to this conspiracy, the brand of humor wasn't a match for my tastes and I didn't really learn what I wanted to learn in the long run.

It had some funny moments but dragged a bit in parts. I think this book would make a great gift for someone. It shows that you know they're a bit odd and like oddball humour. Unfortunately I think this book works best as a gift for someone else and it's not to be bought and read for yourself.

Silly and fun, but belabors the joke a little bit. Great if you're looking for something you can occasionally pick up, read a passage, and laugh.

While I didn't finish this, I did enjoy the parts I read. I worked in politics for about a year and the Birds Aren't Real conversation came up one day. When I initially started this book, I assumed it was written to be series, rather than satire. I was kind of excited to read the argument for the cause from the actual people who believed in it. It wasn't until I read the mention of Mike Wazowski that I realized what the point of the book was. I may go back and finish, but in a world where books are constantly being published, I just don't have the time.

Birds aren’t real by Peter McIindoe and Connor Gaydos in this book it explains how the director of the CIA Alan Dellis insisted on getting rid of all avian creatures in America and creating look-alikes that instead would be surveillance cameras and much worse. This book will not be for everyone but OMG was it for me. I especially liked all the engineers heading to area 51 in their van singing those silly songs oh that made me laugh so much but when they call their self the busketeers I laughed so loud I woke my husband up.. the LOL moments don’t stop there. Once you’re convinced you want to be a bird truther there’s even an instruction on how to create your first gathering to advocate against the surveillance and so much more this is a funny book and one I definitely recommend. It is rare to find these books and so when I do I am so happy but it seems I get through them so quickly must wait for the next one but bittersweet or not I am glad I got to read this one. I love that they use truth to prove their point about this fictional conspiracy theory which only added to the humor there was so many funny things in this book and anyone with a truly sarcastic sense of humor will love it. Books like this don’t come around often so I am glad I got to be an early reader for this one. I want to thank the publisher and NetGalley for my free arc copy please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

Eye rolling ridiculous but many laughs with Birds Aren’t Real.
What imaginations by authors McIndoe and Gaydos. They have ideas, solutions, proposals, schemes, and conspiracy all wrapped up in this one.
From how the birds were killed to questioning if Trump is a pumpkin head result from the bird poison.
Fast read with quirky outcomes.
Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC read in exchange for my review.

It feels a little too real for me to be comfortable with the satire, but I know a couple of people it will hit the right chord with simply because it's so ridiculous. I found the dry, honest-sounding voice it's written in entertaining in small doses, but it got tiresome when I tried to read several chapters in a row.
In the end, it's a funny idea told in a type of humor that's not for me but I can recognize as good. Although, I would have maybe enjoyed it more if it were told in fewer pages.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the read!

I am so thankful to the publisher, NetGalley, and the Author for granting me advanced access to this one before June 11, 2024. This one wasn't for me, but I am still really thankful for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

I thought this was going to be more of a documentary style look into the movement of people that think birds don’t exist. What I ended up reading felt more like a conspiracy driven rant.