The Tale of Pale Male: A True Story (review)

The Pale Male of the title is an unusual resident of a Manhattan penthouse: a red-tailed hawk. He and his mate, Lola, build a nest on the decorative cornice over a window, much to the delight of birdwatchers and naturalists who are thrilled to see the first red-tailed hawk nest in the city and the fuzzy chicks that soon inhabit it. The residents of the penthouse and building, however, are less pleased that "evidence of Lola's meals falls to the balcony below" (and probably a fair bit of droppings as well), and the nest and its supporting pigeon spikes are summarily removed in winter when the chicks are gone; soon, though, public protest forces the building to reinstall the spikes, and Pale Male and Lola settle back in to their home. The story glosses over a few details provided in the brief concluding author's note (the nest stood for over a decade before its removal, and Pale Male has had mates other than Lola), but it's effectively condensed, focusing on the story of the animals' rare habitation and the popular support for their tolerance. Winter neatly sets up her situation by explaining in a few choice words a redtail's taste for high perches and the unusualness of this particular setting, then dives right into an appealing animal story in simple yet telling prose. The straightforward narrative avoids turning the apartment dwellers into villains and the protesters into heroes (though of course animal-loving kids will automatically be on the birds' side nonetheless). Winter's acrylic illustrations, nesting in trim frames against pages in luscious tones of lavender, aqua, and gold, display a neat and geometric New York starring the feathery hawks, who are slightly toylike in their compact handsomeness. Fact-based animal stories have a particular fascination for youngsters, and they'll be rapt with these raptors. An author's note describes in more factual detail the saga of Pale Male's long residence in New York.