Marine Life Books

Big beautiful pictures. Brief descriptions of how dolphins swim, breathe, communicate, and eat etc. Perfect picture book for ages 5 and under.

Jean-Pierre Sylvestre has taken great care in writing this book. Every known species of dolphin and propoise is covered, and he includes a wealth of facts about each species. Take care, this isn't a whale watching book, the only whales covered are the killer whale, false killer whale, pygmy killer whale and long and short finned pilot whales.

I was particularly impressed with some of the rare photographs of river dolphins such as the amazon river dolphin, ganges river dolphin and Chinese river dolphins that I have not seen in other books. Of course, he also has spectacular photos of the more common species. The ones without photographs were the Franciscana, Hourglass dolphin, Fraser's dolphin, Chilean dolphin, Burmeister's propoise, Vaquita and Spectacled porpoise all others included at least one photograph.

Included with the description of each species is a world map of their ranges, a pencil sketch of each species (especially useful if there is no photograph), when they were first identified, diet, population, other common names, reproduction information, a sketch of their skulls and interestingly enough sound emission information (frequency range and where the research was done etc...). This is only part of the information included, he's got all the common information about size and field identification too of course.

What I like about the book is that it can easily be used as a browsing book for people with a casual interest if they want to ID a dolphin they've seen, or somone looking for a little more detail.

There is also and excellent introduction to the book which includes general information about all species, the taxonomy, sound production and hearing, fossil record information and much more.

You can't really go wrong with the book. If you like this book, I also suggest Eyewitness Handbooks "Whales Dolphins and Porpoises" by Mark Carwardine which is just as good and covers all of the dolphins and porpoises plus all the whales. That text is a little less technical without the skulls or sound frequency information and is geared more towards whale watchers.

Informative look at Dolphins and other sea creatures. I especially liked the "A Dolphin's Day" section of the book. I wasn't thrilled that it was in the first person, but it was very interesting to know what a typical dolphin might be doing in a 24 hour period. Bright book design makes use of many small boxes to break up the information into bite size pieces. Contains a glossary and index. Karen Woodworth-Roman, Children's Science Book Review

As a child I was intrigued by a set of nested building blocks received as a gift. When I opened the box, I first saw a single large cube with colorful images of animals on all sides. As I examined it further (bringing an array of quality tools to the situation), I realized that the cube contained a number of progressively smaller blocks. The gift, it turned out, was not just one cube, but a complete set of building blocks, each with its own theme and brilliant images.

Phil Scanlan's new book, "The Dolphins Are Back (Productivity Press 1998)", is very much like those blocks. It is at first look a book about a remarkable environmental cleanup project. In 1987-88, problems of water pollution had reached a critical point, as unprecedented numbers of dead and dying bottle-nosed dolphins washed ashore along the Atlantic coast from New Jersey to Florida. During this 12-month period, 740 animals were swept ashore and died, whereas in the course of a normal beach season, about three or four dead dolphins wash up. In New Jersey, the discovery of waste, debris and pollution also led to beach closings that destroyed vacation plans and threatened shore tourism. Ten years later, the dolphins are back, and New Jersey's shore ranks as one of the cleanest in the country. How was this feat accomplished? Phil Scanlan's book presents a detailed chronology and explanation of the steps through which the quality approach was utilized to bring about this most impressive outcome.

A closer look reveals that the The Dolphins Are Back is also an excellent textbook on the quality approach. It presents a comprehensive overview and detailed case study that illustrates the theory, concepts, strategies and tools of the continuous quality improvement approach.

Beyond this, the book is a tribute -- a tribute to AT&T and the leadership role the corporation has played nationally in advancing the cause of quality, and in generously contributing expertise and insight for the public good. It is also a trib! ute to the skilled and dedicated professionals from AT&T, and colleagues from Quality New Jersey, the QNJ Environment Focus Group and New Jersey state government who contributed their time and talent to the project.

Looking still further, The Dolphins is a testament to the power of teamwork and collaborative problem solving, and an inspirational reminder of what is possible when resources and expertise from the private and public sectors are brought together to address complex and critical issues of the day.

At its core, this is also a book about a teacher, Phil Scanlan. Between the lines it tells the story of a man whose insight, dedication and generosity have made a difference -- to the ecology of the Atlantic coast, New Jersey tourism, the quality movement nationally, and to the many people and organizations he has touched through his work.

So, The Dolphins Are Back is a book to have. It's a set of building blocks, each with its own theme and brilliance.

The Dolphins Of Hilton Head: Their Natural History by ecologist and conservation biologist Cara M. Gubbins is an informed and informative introduction to the fascinating life and world of dolphins, studying their feeding, socializing, communication, and much, much more. Black-and-white photographs enhance the adventurous and detailed, "reader friendly" text, making The Dolphins Of Hilton Head a truly exciting account which is most especially recommended for marine wildlife students in general, and dolphin enthusiasts in particular.

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.

Down the Crawfish Hole is well written for children. A wonderful variation of Alice in Wonderland with a little boy fishing as the major character. It is whimsical and magical and children should be enchanted.

The artistry of the illustrations is just fabulous. The drawings are detailed and fun, and perfectly fit the story.

Looking forward to more children's books from Wes Thomas.

You won't find this information in even the most recent sciencetexts! You learned in school that all energy for life on earth can betraced back to the sun. This belief was revised after the 1977 discovery of deep ocean hydrothermal vent communities where populations of organisms owe their existence to hydrogen sulfide feeding bacteria. The book progresses from discovery to research into the geology, chemistry, and biology of this most interesting ecosystem. Numerous color photographs and detailed illustrations accompany the text. I especially enjoyed seeing the names and faces of the many scientists who have helped reveal the secrets of this submarine environment. This book would make an excellent supplement in a science classroom and no school library would be complete without it! Move over photosynthesis, chemosynthesis rules!

From the ocean surface to the seabed floor, aquatic life abounds ranging from the microsopic to the gigantic. Ceentimert-long arrow worms gobble balls of algae near the surface, while hatchet fish glow and giant squid battle whales in the darker waters thousands of feet belore the surface. On the bottom are to be found sea vents creating an opportunity for exotic marine to flourish. Each page of Down, Down, Down In The Ocean takes youn greaders ages 5 to 8, down another level of ocean environment, each a unique biosphere supporting life specific to its depth. Author Sandra Markle accurately cpatures the evocative power of the ocean with her Informative text, while arts Bob Marstall treats the reader to rich, vivid, fascinating, revealing illustrations.

A wonderful bio of olympic swimmer Duke Kahanamoku...really made the story of this Hawaiian legend come to life! Well-written and with beautiful paintings.