Birds of a feather flock to Kauai

Aloha and Happy New Year 2017 (and “Cockle-Doodle-Doo” 4715)!

That’s right! 4715 is the Year of the Rooster, for those that follow the Chinese calendar, and that new year celebration begins on Jan. 28!

That makes this year extra special for those of us on Kauai because everywhere we look we see roosters!

We think that makes this year a great year and everyday filled with new possibilities! “Cockle-Doodle-De-Doo,” baby!

What better way to celebrate the Year of the Rooster than with some of the wildest roosters and hens on the planet!

And wow do we have plenty of extraordinary chickens on this island which brings us to this week’s book, “Extraordinary Chickens” by Stephen Green-Armytage.

Just look at the cover! Crazy, right? And that’s just the beginning!

Within its numerous full-color glossy pages are a bevy of birds the likes of which most have never seen! Some are simply beautiful, some elegant, while others are outrageous, and some even look like something right out of Dr. Seuss! And they are all real! When we were perusing the book, we were amazed at some of the variations that existed, types we never would have imaged.

The author also does a great job of explaining this incredible variety of roosters and hens and how they came to be. Technically, this is the realm of the “exotic chicken.” (Funny, right? Two words we probably would never think to put together!) Once we started to read it, we couldn’t put it down!

So, regardless of whether you are a chicken fancier, a usual celebrator of the Chinese New Year, a Kaua’i-resident, or merely fascinated by this tantalizing introduction to this little-known world, “Extraordinary Chickens” is quite frankly a pretty cool book and very fun to look through.

So we say, “Crow readers, crow!”

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Ed & Cynthia Justus are owners of The Bookstore in Hanapepe.