Pale Male x 3

I’ve enjoyed reading three picture books about a famous hawk from New York City. Pale Male arrived in Central Park in 1991 and eventually built a nest at 927 Fifth Avenue. He grew an international fan club. It’s fascinating how the three stories differ in text and illustration.

City Hawk: The Story of Pale Male by Meghan McCarthy (2007) is a gentle story appropriate for very young children. The large round eyes that McCarthy paints on both birds and humans removes the hawks’ naturally stern expression. There’s no mention of how Pale Male’s nest was removed from the building and the relentless protest that followed. So there’s no conflict in this story. However, this drama is detailed in an Author’s Note (two pages of tiny print at the back of the book) and an extensive bibliography. A single page history of Central Park also follows the story.

The Tale of Pale Male: A True Story by Jeanette Winter (2007) is similar to McCarthy’s in that it’s a brief narrative about Pale Male and a mate raising two chicks in New York City. While McCarthy’s book says the nest was “atop an apartment building”, Winter specifies that it was on a “window top”. She also includes an important detail: spikes intended to keep away pigeons held the nest secure. Winter paints huge hawks, hawks as large as people. They are enormous in their nest. She shows feathers and bones falling outside an apartment window, and this helps us understand why the nest is removed. She shows the protest and return of the spikes, but doesn’t explain how building management dealt with the hawks’ mess, not even in the one-page author’s note at the end of the book.

Pale Male Citizen: Hawk of New York City written by Janet Schulman and illustrated by Meilo So (2008) is for an older reader. Much more text allows for a more detailed story, and a well written story at that. So’s watercolors show realistic hawks from a variety of perspectives. Schulman’s story has three chicks that require parental attention. One builds a nest of its own on Central Park South and begins a new generation of city dwellers. The drama of nest removal happens twice. The first time, building management finds out that the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 protects the nest; they must let the birds rebuild it. The second removal was because in 2003 the act was changed. Post protest, Schluman explains that “an apron, or cradle, below the nest” was built to catch the hawks’ garbage.

All three stories emphasize hawk courtship, nest building, egg hatching, and the fledging of fully grown chicks. It’s an exciting process. May each book encourage children to appreciate wildlife.