An inspiring biography of a formidable twentieth century Smithsonian ornithologist who never bows to the biases of sexist and intellectually condescending peers as she doggedly works her way up from staff taxidermist to the world's leading expert on the morphology, chemistry, and other structural characteristics of avian feathers. Roxie Laybourne never completes a PhD yet ultimately becomes the go-to expert for identifying any species of bird from the evidence of its feathers alone. This leads her to become a frequent and very busy consultant and courtroom expert in identifying the causes and circumstances of bird strike-related air disasters.. Something of an eccentric, Roxie holds court--to the evident dismay of her more conventionally credentialed colleagues--for half-a-century at the Smithsonian, until her mid-90s. Throughout her career she accrues mentees and admirers in the military, at the FAA and FBI, and throughout the forensic and legal communities.

The content of Roxie's life is fascinating and uplifting. Chris Sweeney's portrayal is appropriately awed but the style of presentation tends to fall a tad short in terms of verve, rhythm, and reader engagement. Otherwise a first-rate bio.

Wow. Chris Sweeney's "The Feather Detective" is an in depth look at a true hero in aviation, wildlife management and conservation, and general science. Roxie Laybourne was an incredible force in the creation of wildlife forensics. I am so glad this telling of her life and work will be coming to bookshelves as she should be a more celebrated figure whose work has advanced so many fields.

Sweeney brought Roxie to life through this fascinating read. Roxie was a determined and thoughtful women and through her determination and hard work became the leading expert on feather identification. Much of her story takes place in the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History surrounded by thousands of bird skins that were used for comparison. However, as she solidified her place in history, she testified in a number of trails with murders and poachers and other kinds of crimes related to, or whose evidence included, feathers. Her passion remained with aviation and improvements to the field.

Sweeney's telling of her life shows she was quite the character who was not your stereotypical mother or grandmother. Interviews with those who knew her show a caring, funny, and interesting person who overcame a lot of challenges and struggles to make the mark she did - even though that was never her intention.

This book is recommended to anyone interested in birds, forensics, and aviation as she made an enormous impact on all these fields that we all benefit from.

Thank you to Chris Sweeney for this wonderful book, I have been waiting for more about Roxie after learning about her a few years ago and thoroughly enjoyed this fascinating portrait of an inspiring woman. Thank you to Avid Reader Press and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to review this book for my unbiased, honest review.

This book was fascinating. Roxie is a bad ass who made herself a name in a world where men were the main focus. She became a feather legend. I loved learning about her investigations with the FBI into bird strikes on aircraft - i had no idea the history around this. I also love birds and appreciated the photos of feather barbules at the end.

This was a phenomal non-fiction book that kept me fully engaged. Thank you so much NetGalley and the publisher for a chance to read this book.

This is an amazing book that highlights the pioneering work of Roxie Laybourne at the Smithsonian Institute. Self-taught in forensic ornithology, she played a crucial role in teaching others how to identify bird feathers and species. During her career her skills enabled her to assist the FBI in homicide and poaching cases and she became renowned for her skills.

Her incredible legacy stems from her groundbreaking work with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), where she identified bird species responsible for airplane crashes. This, in turn, allowed the FAA to develop strategies to mitigate such incidents. Although this continues to be an issue, her training of others means her legacy is in safe hands.

Before reading this book, I had no knowledge of bird strikes in aviation, and it has truly enlightened me. Roxie Laybourne was an extraordinary woman, and I’m so glad I chose to read this book.

I received an advanced reader copy from netgallery and this is my honest review.

This is a wonderful book. It's nice to see that some people who are acknowledged experts in a generally unknown field get recognition. This young lady certainly deserves that, and this book is a good start.