When the Angry Birds movie hit theaters, we asked our NYPL recommendation experts to name their favorite books, movies, or TV shows that feature… well, angry birds.

We opened it up to all age ranges, with one caveat: The birds MUST be REALLY angry. No nice birds on this list!

Picture Books

If You Pant a Seed by Kadir Nelson. There’s also an angry mouse, an angry rabbit, and GORGEOUS artwork. —Althea Georges, Mosholu

 

 

 

“When Bird woke up, he was grumpy.” In Grumpy Bird by Jeremy Tankard, Bird goes through a walk in the forest where his animal friends try to cheer him up between plenty of stomping and sarcasm! —Anna Taylor, Children’s Programming

 

 

 

Pardon Me by Daniel Miyares. A little yellow bird gets increasingly angry as other animals invade his space on a rock in a sunny swamp. He gets his due with a twisted twist ending. —M. Amber Moller, George Bruce

 

 

Children's & Young Adult Books

The Outcast of Redwall from the Redwall series by Brian Jacques. Krakulat, the leader of the Crow Brethren, led a revengeful attack against the horde that killed his mother. —Laura Stein, Grand Central

 

 

 

 

 

Silverwing by Kenneth Oppel instilled in me both a serious fear of owls (these particular owls are very angry, and they set things on fire) and a lot of knowledge about bats. —Jordan Graham, Outreach

 

 

 

 

 

The Hoboken Chicken Emergency by Daniel Pinkwater. This is what happens when your Mom sends you out to buy a turkey for Thanksgiving dinner, but you bring home an independent-minded, 266-pound chicken named Henrietta instead. —Anne Rouyer, Mulberry Street

 

 

 

Hawksong by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes. After thousands of years, the war between the shapeshifting avians and serpiente comes to a head, and combining the two royal houses may be the only chance at peace. Hawksong is the first book of The Kiesha’ra Series. —Nanyamkah M. Mars, Westchester Square

 

 

 

 

Graphic Novels

Mouse Guard: Winter 1152 by David Petersen is about mice with swords and in this graphic novel they fight an owl, which to a mouse with a sword is like taking on a dragon. —Judd Karlman, Pelham Bay

 

 

 

John Layman and Rob Guillory’s Chew  series features the homicidal secret agent chicken Poyo, who is a partly-mechanized “doomsday device” known for mercilessly eviscerating his enemies. It’s crazier than it sounds. —Crystal Chen, Muhlenberg

 

 

 

 

 

Robin isn’t actually a bird, but he represents one… he’s the human leader with huge anger management issues from Teen Titans Go!, an MTV Cribs-meets-superhero team comic and cartoon. —Jeremy Megraw, Billy Rose Theatre Division

 

 

 

Adult Books

The series where owls own each other all day, every day: Guardians of Ga’Hoole (Book 1: The Capture). Please live by the words of the film’s trailer, “On his way to finding the legend, he will become one.” —Joe Pascullo, Grand Central

 

 

 

 

 

Ever wonder where Hitchcock got the idea? Check out the chilling short story “The Birds” in Daphne Du Maurier’s collection The Birds and Other Stories, which delves into the historic symbolism of World War II. —Alessandra Affinito, Chatham Square

 

 

 

 

 

The whooping cranes who find a home at the Rubber Rose Ranch in Even Cowgirls Get The Blues are definitely angry about being kidnapped by the FBI and used as pawns in the battle between big government and women’s liberation! —Charlie Radin, Inwood

 

 

 

 

 

How about The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami? It consists of “The Thieving Magpie,” “Bird as Prophet” and “The Birdcatcher.” —Jenny Baum, Jefferson Market

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Shrike in Hyperion by Dan Simmons is one angry “bird.” The earthly shrike is commonly known as the “butcher bird” for its habit of catching insects and small vertebrates and impaling them on the thorns of trees before it feeds. Simmons is a master of language and has a very unique imagination, so the Shrike in his story is a time-travelling being that takes the “butcher” aspect all of the way. —Virginia Bartow, Special Collections

 

 

 

Movies & Television

The angriest birds ever: The Birds, Alfred Hitchcock’s classic, enigmatic thriller from 1963. —Kathie Coblentz, Special Collections

 

 

 

 

 

Perhaps it’s a bit of a stretch, but how about The Maltese Falcon? —Greg Holch, Mulberry Street

 

 

 

 

The 1940s movie Bill and Coo is weirdly wonderful, and has an all bird cast. Yes, an all bird cast dressed as humans in the tiny town of Chirpendale. Little Bill rescues Coo from the evil crow known as The Black Menace. —Maura Muller, Volunteer Office

The owls are not what they seem.. and there is no angrier bird than Bob in Twin Peaks, the complete series and Twin Peaks, Fire Walk With Me. —Billy Parrott, Mid-Manhattan

 

 

 

 

 

Iago, the grouchy, scheming, short-tempered parrot from Disney’s Aladdin, was one of my favorite characters in the movie. (He becomes a little nicer in the sequel, though.) —Christina Lebec, Bronx Library Center

 

 

 

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Staff picks are chosen by NYPL staff members and are not intended to be comprehensive lists. We'd love to hear your ideas too, so leave a comment and tell us what you’d recommend. And check out our Staff Picks browse tool for more recommendations!