Synopses & Reviews
With backyard chicken keeping and urban farming at an all-time high, the proudest of purebred poultry take center stage once again in this fully revised and expanded edition of the classic The Fairest Fowl, now retitled The Magnificent Chicken. Updated in hardcover with even more chickens and an enlarged resource section, this celebration of the wonder, peculiarity, and magnificence of championship chickens showcases more than 40 astonishing breeds in glamorous photos—many brand new—and informative text, while an introduction by Ira Glass explores the finer points of poultry shows and chicken portraiture.
Review
"Stunning photographic studies of all manner of domesticated fowl, from the more traditional breeds to the downright strange.... Although the photographs are the book's main attraction, one reason it's a keeper is the wonderful insight it provides into the strange, somewhat underground world of poultry showing." -- Design Sponge
Review
"As a city boy who never knew or cared much about chickens, what can I say other than this book just blew me away. Who knew that there was so much diversity, so much beauty, such a subculture of aficionados, such great photography, and such humor. About chickens." - TreeHugger.com
Review
"Required reading. Foghorn Leghorn might be the most recognizable chicken, but breeds range from the elaborately feathered Sultan and the stately Brahma to pint-sized Bantams. In The Magnificent Chicken, photographer Tamara Staples documents 41 different types. Her compendium of books, websites, magazines, and organizations that offer support to chicken enthusiasts is indispensable." - Dwell
Review
"The labor of love chronicles purebred fowls, championship chickens, and more than 40 eccentric breeds, blending lively text and brilliant and peculiar photographs by Tamara Staples, who has been following champion chickens since 1998." -- Town&Country Magazine online
About the Author
Tamara Staples has been photographing championship chickens since 1998. She lives in New York City.