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1) Kaufman, Kenn. Kaufman Field Guide to Advanced Birding: Understanding What You See and Hear. 2011. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Paperback: 448 pages. Price: $21.00 U.S.
SUMMARY: Birders can memorize hundreds of details and still not be able to identify birds if they don’t really understand what’s in front of them.Today birders have access to almost too much information, and their attempts to identify birds can be drowned out by excess detail. The all-new Kaufman Field Guide to Advanced Birding takes a different approach, clarifying the basics and providing a framework for learning about each group. Overall principles of identification are explained in clear language, and ten chapters on specific groups of birds show how these principles can be applied in practice. Anyone with a keen interest in identifying birds will find that this book makes the learning process more effective and enjoyable, and that truly understanding what we see and hear can make birding more fun.

RECOMMENDATION: When compared to Kaufman's 1990 Advanced Birding title this book has color illustrations but fewer species accounts (34 in the old book vs. 24 in the new book) but has many more introductory chapters (1 chapter in the old book vs. 7 chapters in the new book). I recommend this book for intermediate to advanced birders wanting to improve their birding skills.