Shark Books

Discovering Sharks, edited by Samuel Gruber, is a must for every serious marine biologist

The cover with its big "Diving with Sharks" title and the prominent picture of a great white shark suggests that this is a book about sharks, and it is, but that is not all it is. The smaller print says "and Other Adventure Dives," and then at the bottom, "includes practical advice for experienced divers." In fact, only about half of the editorial part of this excellent book is about sharks. The other half is about all sorts of other cool sea creatures and adventures like wreck diving, caverns, caves and places with strong currents. So be aware of that if all you seek is shark information.

The book's author, Jack Jackson, is one of the world's great adventurers. Though he started out as an industrial chemist, his soon directed his sights on traveling, mountaineering, writing and lecturing all over the globe. He made over 20 expeditions in the Sahara Desert, and over 160 treks and journeys into deserts, mountains, rainforests and seas around the world, and that includes places far, far off the beaten track.

The picture shown on his website is that of a grizzled graybeard, precisely what you'd expect a seasoned explorer to look like. Yet, despite his vast experience with things and places most of us can only dream of, Jackson never lectures or pontificates, nor is he excessively obsessed with arcane minutiae of whatever he sets his sights on. He is an eminently practical man who always sees the big picture, and one who truly knows how to present his adventures in large-format, compelling books with superb photography, many illustrations, sidebars, and whatever else it takes to really convey both the essence and the depth of a topic. When I first got into Scuba, his "Complete Diving Manual" was instrumental in giving me a good foundation and understanding of all aspects of diving. You wouldn't necessarily expect that from a world traveling explorer who also wrote on non-diving related adventures such as "The Asian Highway" and a book on choosing, using and maintaining go-anywhere 4-wheel-drive vehicles.

"Diving with Sharks" is divided into six sections. The first, and largest, is on sharks. Here, Jackson describes sharks, diving with sharks both in steel cages and among them, different kinds of sharks, and different locations. He covers Blue and Mako Sharks, Great Whites, Hammerheads, Raggedtooth Sharks and adds a section on shark feeding sites as well as aquarium shark dives for those who'd rather approach those magnificent creatures in the safety of a confined space. The large 8-1/2 x 11 format of the book and the heavy, glossy stock are used to the max with numerous excellent color photos. On each large two-page spread, you not only get to read Jackson's informative, firsthand descriptions, but you can also see exactly what it's like.

A smaller section entitled "Diving with Gentle Giants" covers Whale Sharks and Basking Sharks, and this wouldn't be a Jack Jackson book if the section did not include a superb illustration that shows the relative size of all those sharks and whale sharks, with a human diver and a Blue Whale providing perspective. Next comes a colorful, informative and again superbly illustrated pot-pourri on all sorts of sea creatures, from Dolphins to Mantas and other rays, turtles, jellifish, potato cod and even sea snakes.

Now Jackson moves on to diving in different kinds of environments. First underwater adventures in strong currents in places like Palau, Cozumel, Cocos Island, and the Philippines. Then it's on to wreck diving, with descriptions of a good dozen major wrecks and wreck sites around the world. In typical Jackson fashion, this includes sidebars on diving with scuba pioneer Hans Hass and an overview of extended range/technical diving. A final section is on closed overhead environments and this one, again, covers everything from generic information on cavern and cave diving to equipment to the description of half a dozen of the world's great overhead dives -- again accompanied by fantastic photography and extras like a superbly rendered cross section illustration of the Wookey Hole sump/cave system in England.

"Multimedia" glossies are often lightweight coffee table books with lots of pictures and little substance. Jackson never falls into that trap. He and his publishers are masters in using words, pictures, typefaces, photographs, illustrations and related graphics to make topics come to life and turn mere reading into a spell-binding experience.

-- C. H. Blickenstorfer

I found the book (which I found at the local library)to be very helpful in dealing with people in a business setting and in everyday life. I also liked the quizzes which give you a sort of a "checkup from the neck up" to let you know if you are "doing the right thing" whether it be as I said before in a business setting or in your everyday going-ons. I would highly recommend this book for its help with business and also the fact that when it utilizes the dolphins, it makes it easier to understand

Cleverly authored and colorfully illustrated by Nick Ward, Don't Eat The Babysitter! is the original and entertaining picturebook story of young Sammy and Sophie Shark, and the visit of their favorite baby-sitter as their parents leave for the night. Captivating its young readers through a creative telling of the young shark's uncontrollable problem of biting and eating, Don't Eat The Babysitter! follows Sammy through the a night of courage and fun as the young shark must learn to control himself before his parents return home. A welcome and popular addition to school and community library picturebook collections, Don't Eat The Babysitter! is very highly recommended for young readers for its lively and entertaining story with an underlying theme of active learning and maturing self-control.

Even Sharks Need Friends is a charming children's picturebook featuring distinctive illustrations, made by affixing paper shapes and other physical articles against a painted background and photographing the result. Though blocky and simple, the resulting pictures come alive with three-dimensional effect. The story about a lonely shark who befriends a near-sighted little sea urchin is sure to delight young readers, and additional pages offer simple activities for young people - a short message in secret letter-number code, fun facts about sea creatures, instructions for making a gloompa just like the book shows, black-and-white pictures to color, and a fascinating two-page explanation of exactly how the amazing artwork of Even Sharks Need Friends was created. A one-of-a-kind visual experience especially for young people fascinated by creatures under the sea.

If you need to know about sharks this is the book for you. Annotated and well illustrated!1

This is not really a book but a concise, updated, fun look at sharks. Each laminated page (there are 6) is the size of a travel brochure but it is packed with color photos and informative tidbits. The pamphlet takes away the stereotypes and gives you quirky facts about sharks. Did you know shark oil is used in Preparation H. Just one of the little ditties. I bought this to fill a bag of kid's crafts and science projects that I will use to keep some kids busy on a long plane ride. But remember this is not a book. Where is the Klutz guide to Volcanoes?

Capt. Barrett may not be the best writer, but he clearly describes many proven tricks and techniques that can increase your take of sharks. I am a seasoned angler with my USCG captains liscense and many impressive catches under my belt and this book taught me a lot. It is also a great book to introduce neaphyte anglers into big game fishing. One of the larger mako's I caught this summer (516 lbs.) was a direct result of a tip I read in this book. caio.

This is a great game for kids and adults. I always have a great time playing with my family and teaching them how to pronounce the names of the fish!

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This book is great! It's about the boxcar children trying to find out who robbed Wilson's Jewelry Store and why? First,
the boxcar children look at a newspaper and find out that an aquarium has a great white shark in Florida. Next, they go to
Florida and somebody they know (she also works at the aquarium) meets them at the airport and takes them to the aquarium. Next, they do many fun things for several days. They find out that somebody who worked at the aquarium robbed the Jewelry store.

The End!