For any birdwatcher wishing to globalise their perspective on this often tricky group of birds, Shorebirds, is an excellent place to begin. Covering all of the world's wader species, as well as more obscure groups such as Jacanas and Seedsnipes, this book is a perfect tool for those travelling to any region of the world as well as to those with any pretensions of discovering and identifying vagrant migratory species wherever in the world they are located.

Eighty eight colour plates depict 214 species in a variety of poses, including flight, and are clearly labelled to match the brief text on the facing page, with full texts at the back of the book. All major plumages of most species are illustrated including juvenile forms and the species are arranged in approximate taxonomic order with a few alterations to show similar species or those from the same geographic regions together.

An important and valuable feature of Shorebirds is the inclusion of global range maps which are a useful aid to birdwatchers when planning overseas trips and in predicting which species might be found as vagrants.

Although this is essentially an identification guide, this book has the feel of a reference book and is perhaps a little large to fit in most pockets. However, it does fit easily into a small day pack and is just about light enough to be carried for long distances.

With 1700 illustrations and 412 pages, birdwatchers get a lot for their money with this book.