When media worldwide whips itself into a frenzy over the death of a parrot, you know it must have been one amazing bird. Alex the African grey parrot was just that - "the world's most famous talking parrot" according to The New York Times and "smarter than the average U.S. President" according to The Guardian.

When 31-year-old Alex died of unknown causes in 2007, it was not only the end of a phenomenal era of research into animal intelligence and behaviour, but it was also, sadly, the end of the close relationship with his owner, Irene Pepperberg.

Pepperberg wrote several academic papers on Alex's cognitive abilities, which were comparable to those of a small child. Alex was the first bird to display such intelligence; he learnt a host of nouns and colours, how to add, and difficult concepts such as 'same' and 'different'. Not bad for a birdbrain.

Alex & Me is an autobiographical depiction of the friendship between bird and biologist. It documents the ups and downs of Pepperberg's life with Alex - the ridicule she received from sceptics when they began, the struggle for funding she frequently faced, as well as the breakthrough moments in bird cognition.

It contains a wealth of previously unpublished anecdotes - the subtle ways Alex displayed his intellect when he was being cheeky. He understood that "I'm sorry" could diffuse tense situations and used it as such. He learnt what 'grey' is while looking at himself in the mirror and asking one researcher, "What colour?" Every night he'd say "I love you" to Pepperberg before she left.

Up until now, Pepperberg's publications maintained the stoic objectivity required to be taken seriously by her peers. She forced herself to regard Alex as a 'test subject' and not as her pet. Only now, after his death, does she let emotion influence her writing in this, the story behind the science.

This book is an easy, enjoyable read. It's refreshing to see the emotional side of animal behaviour research, though the gushy language may be too much for some. It's a shame that Alex became an "ex-parrot", in the words of Monty Python, at such a young age - African greys often live for over 50 years.