How to watch Christian Cooper discuss ‘Better Living Through Birding’ at L.A. Times Book Club

Christian Cooper, who gained fame as the Central Park Birder after a racially charged run-in with a dog walker, joined the L.A. Times Book Club Aug. 16 to discuss his memoir, “Better Living Through Birding: Notes From a Black Man in the Natural World.”

Cooper talked about the takeaways from the 2020 Central Park incident, why he decided to write a book, his approach to creating an inclusive TV series and why the Audubon Society must change its name. He also shared his two favorite birding apps, ebird and Merlin.

You can watch Cooper’s conversation with Times writer Carla Hall on YouTube or at @latimes on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.

Book cover for “Better Living Through Birding” by Christian Cooper.

(Random House)

In a 69-second video that went viral, Cooper recorded his encounter with a white woman named Amy Cooper (no relation), as she refused to put her dog on a leash and then called 911 to report “an African American man threatening my life.”

The May 2020 video took on added significance as another recording surfaced, made that same day in Minneapolis. This one was nine minutes long, showing a police officer using his knee to crush the life out of a Black man named George Floyd. As Floyd’s death triggered a summer of protest, Cooper’s video continued to have its own impact, sparking discussion about racial bias and white privilege.

This May 25, 2020, file image, taken from video provided by Christian Cooper, shows Amy Cooper with her dog calling police at Central Park in New York.

(ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Cooper decided to embrace his unexpected fame. “I realized there was an opportunity here to keep doing the things I’d always been doing, but doing them on a bigger stage, a bigger platform, and reach more people,” Cooper said in an interview with the Times.

Christian Cooper surveys the beach at Fort Tilden.

(Troy Christopher / National Geographic)

“Better Living Through Birding” tells the story of his life up to and since that fateful day in Central Park, interspersed with practical tips and mini-essays on the pleasures of birding.

Cooper also hosts a National Geographic series, “Extraordinary Birder With Christian Cooper,” which debuted in June after a year of production.

Christian Cooper takes to the sea to meet “Captain Pelican” on the west side of Puerto Rico.

(National Geographic for Disney)

The series is filmed in locations including the Southern California desert, Hawaii, Alabama and Puerto Rico. The six-episode season is available for streaming on Disney+ and Hulu.

Birder Christian Cooper observes distant shorebird activity at the Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge in California.

(Jon Kroll / National Geographic)

“Better Living Through Birding” is the August selection of the L.A. Times Book Club, which brings Southern California together every month to a common read and hosts community conversations with world-class authors and newsmakers.

A pair of burrowing owls poke their heads out of a burrow in Imperial Valley, CA, home to about 70% of the state’s breeding burrowing owls. From “Extraordinary Birder with Christian Cooper,” the National Geographic series.

(Jon Kroll/National Geographic)

In September, the book club is reading bestselling author Walter Isaacson’s biography “Elon Musk.” Get tickets for the Oct. 1 event.

On Oct. 11, former Washington Post editor Martin Baron joins book club readers to discuss “Collision of Power: Trump, Bezos, and The Washington Post.”

Join us: Sign up for the L.A. Times Book Club newsletter for the latest live events and book news. You can support the book club and community discussion with a tax-deductible contribution through the Los Angeles Times Community Fund.