Each year, the Cornell Lab of Ornithology gets tens of thousands of questions about birds. Why is a cardinal attacking my windows? Will birds explode if they eat rice thrown after a wedding? How can I keep squirrels out of my bird feeders? Why don't birds fall off branches as they sleep?

Drawing on these perennial puzzlers and many others she has fielded over a lifetime of bird study, Cornell Lab science editor Laura Erickson has compiled answers to more than 200 common and not-so-common bird questions. The result: "The Bird Watching Answer Book: Everything You Need to Know to Enjoy Birds in Your Backyard and Beyond" (Storey Publishers), a 400-page pocket-sized reference (available at Amazon.com, $14.95) that reads like a casual conversation with your friendly neighborhood "bird lady."

That's because readers will find quirky asides and amusing stories sprinkled throughout the text that make for great "Hey, did you know?" conversation starters.

For example, did you know that:

"Whether people like birds or not, they notice them," says Erickson. "My hope is that, with the book, people start noticing not just that birds are there, but that they're really cool beings sharing this planet with us."

Author and bird expert Kenn Kaufman says, "This is a gem of a book! It's filled to the brim with solid, reliable information, as you would expect from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, and it's written in Laura Erickson's clear, lively, engaging style. The organization of the book, as a series of answers to hundreds of intriguing questions, makes it easy to look up quick facts or to just browse for fun."

Erickson has written three other books and is a past winner of the National Outdoor Book Award. She also writes Twin Beaks, the first blog by birds and for birds.

Pat Leonard is a staff writer at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.