Marine Life Books

The lonely Dolphin




Will Mandy save bob or not?


Dolphin in the deep is a book about dolphins in a zoo that do talent shows and makes people laugh and cheer! The dolphin names are Bob and Bing.But one day Bob dies and Bing gets so lonely that he misses his brother and does not do the talent shows. Will Bing do the shows or not?


My favorite part of the book is when the dolphin dies and Mandy tries to help bob by telling Joel to jump in but it was too late. That was a sad part in the book. But I still enjoy that part in that part.


I think the author's purpose of writing this book Dolphin in the Deep is that you need to work together to try to save something you love.


My recommendation for Dolphin in the Deep is that it is a really good book because it is so interesting, there is always a problem and mandy is trying to save the problem or animal. Dolphin in the Deep is the best book I've read. I would give this book five stars.


By,
Alexa

Dolphin in the deep is a great story which is set in sunny Florida! Dolphins are one of my favourite animals and it is really sad when one of the dolphin dies. Although a sad story it is a great one!! I would recommend this book to anyone who likes animals. Read the whole collection! I am!!
Thanks for reading this!
(...)

This book makes you feel like you are really in the story.
Ben.M.Bagilo is a really great writer. I am crazy with dolphins.
I found this book the best I have read so far.

I love this book a lot. It is so sad when one of the dolphins died I almost cried! Read this book!

this is a great book! in this book mandy and her friend joel enjoy going to the local animal park to play with tame dolphins bob and bing.the dolphins are happy but then bob dies. bing seems lonely without bob. joel and mandy want to help him. but how can they help him when bings owner wont even let him stop working for a day! read to find out. I highly recamend this book to anyone who likes animal are books, dolphins, or both!

Informative book with a lot of provocative scenarios (the analogy of the Tokyo fish market and the piece of empty ocean is genius). The illustrations were expert and a welcome surprise. Much of the support for the imminent extinction assertions, however, are buttressed by seemingly Environmental Activists' groups. More balanced sources might add credibility to the general thesis.

As a scientist I thought the book provided an excellent edifying view of our global marine ecosystem. The book builds an extremely strong case of the devastation caused by man to the marine environment. More politicians should read this book, especially the Bush Admininstration with their imbecilic view of global warming. The power of this book can harnessed in the classroom, by planting a seed in future generations for the importance of the biodiversity of life. Great book!!!

Where Empty Ocean wins above a dozen other books is how it takes a bottom line approach, species by species and gives you the facts. Facts verifiable by the ever-handy Redlist(provided online by the IUCN). Ellis goes quite a bit further though, giving a historical account of each species. It is nice to know, for instance, why it is that the Sea Otter has ended up in the predicament it has; never mind that a friend of mine (oh my) was quite unaware that the Dodo was eaten out of existance.


Ellis makes each animal a story--and a worthwhile story at that. I recall sharing 'Wounded Knee' with a friend of mine who gave up after a few chapters saying he 'got the point', and while it works for literary criticism, it doesn't for historical or scientific criticism. I doubt that Ellis's book is in anyway comprehensive, but while most readers will grasp the levity of things very quickly, it deserves to be read in its entirity. I think the various species mentioned here (many in trouble, many already extinct) deserve that much.

Best yet, while Ellis does little to disguise his deep affinity for all those things that would make the sea their home, his arguments rest not at all upon this sentimentality, but rather on the instability of our marine-based economies as populations crash.

At least a dozen eighteenth century extinctions would read like this epitaph "Like the sea cow, it was ridiculously easy to kill and tasted good...", but Ellis exposes how modern methods are far more effective in decimating extant species than any whalers ever could have managed.

Possibly one of the most essential reads for an easy overview of the state of sea-going species, though readers with a greater interest will no doubt want to dig farther into the literature and on-line resources.

This is a truly frightening book. Most people are really unaware of what's going on today out in the world's oceans. Giant long lines nets and factory fishing ships are creating unprecendented damage to the world's fisheries. The odds are that things are sadly even worse than this book states. A few years ago it was revealed that the total world fish catch figures had been inflated as a result of cheating by China, the world's number one fishing nation. This made it look like things were better than they were. The only reason they got caught was that they forgot to rig the local catch figures as well. Think about it. China is a totalitarian state. Do you trust them to tell you the truth about what their fishing fleets are doing right now in the middle of the Pacific and all over the world? We need greater monitoring of what is going on by the UN or some other international body.

Richard Ellis' "The Empty ocean" reads like an encycleopedic obituary for marine life. It's an on going casualty list of oceanic life forms complete with well researched statistics designed to give the reader plenty of "shock and awe."

The book focuses on two age old problems; an infinite population versus a finite food source, and man's greedy Draconian methods used to enhance his own pocket book. Long line fishing boats with 60 to 100 miles of fishing line strung out across the waves dangling thousands of baited hooks is bound to catch "something!"

This book is truly a cornucopia of resource material injected with the author's personal caustic innuendos that serve to highlight his zealous crusade against the onslaught and waste by big corporations and sea food distributors.

A good read, but perhaps an even better source of historical statistics and research for tomorrow's promising marine biologists.

Ellis has put a great deal of effort into his topic. His realism and propensity to "tell it like it is" will slice into your heart and soul, better than any harpoon ... every thrown by Captain Ahab!

Expecting another boring science book on whales, I was surprised at the way Dick Russell made the whales seem what they should be: interesting. Russell covers almost all aspects of the gray whales in his book Eye of the Whale. As he follows the migratory path of the whales along the coast, the reader gets a good sense of the science, history, and issues surrounding gray whales. He writes about the story of Charles Scammon, the legendary whaler whose research on gray whales is still used by scientists today. He writes about conservation issues and the politics behind the plan to build a saltworks in the protected lagoons. He writes about the individuals involved in gray whale research along the coast. What I really liked about this book though was that instead of just telling the reader about these things, he shows them. He makes the book read more like a story than just a research paper about conservation by using personal accounts and treating the people in his book not just as researchers but as characters. I didn't like when he would go into long, and confusing background explanations that were hard not to skip over. Other than that though it was a well written and up to date account of the interaction between humans and the gray whales. I would reccomend this book to anyone interested in whales at all. You don't need to be a scientist to understand it and it is interesting and informational at the same time.

The critics are right to rave about "Eye of the Whale" by Dick Russell. In it's plainest form, the book entails a synopsis of the legendary gray whale and it's journeys through Oregon, Washington, the shores of Monterey, Vancouver Island, the Bearing Sea, the Bering Strait (Alaska), and Sakhalin Island, a hot topic in recent news. One of the best explanations of the book I can find is when someone describes encountering a gray whale. "Especially when you looked at its eyes, you just knew it probably thought it was a boatload of those [people] who like to pet them" In this passage we see a lot of what the book is about: People encountering the majestic grays and suddenly have a new opinion of them.
The book has many passage from Charles Melville Scammon, a nineteenth century whaler who brought gray whales to popularity, by nearly killing them all. He then turned naturalist, and studied the gray whale extensively, following them around the globe. Russell tells the story of retracing Scammon's steps and gaining a new perspective.

What is so strong about the book is the writing. When I opened it I didn't think I was going have a thrill a minute, and I didn't. But, I was surprised of it's intricately weaved passages, interesting readers, telling a simple story, and making a strong point without yelling it at you. In this way, Russell has helped the grays greatly by encouraging whale conservation, and showing the many sides of being an endangered species.

The books weaknesses were few and far between, in my opinion. I will say, sometimes the passages, though well worked out were a bit lengthy and could have been more concise. The largeness of the book is intimidating to some, but hopefully this review will help in the case that it isn't a hard read, and also it good to read in just sections, and good to have for reference.

I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in saving a great thing and encouraging conservation of nature in your friends, neighbors, children, and yourself. It's not worded at a hard reading level, and offers great views into the world of the deep.

Staring into THE EYE OF THE WHALE certainly seems to be a mystical experience. Unfortunately on the whale watching trips I've been on you get no closer to the whales than the deck of the ship. Not close up and personal (sometimes even rubbing and patting the "friendly whales")as is the case in Baja, California, with watching the Gray whales from small Zodiac boats. Perhaps you are like me then and (unlike the author) know nothing about the metaphysical powers of whales and their ability to bring about meditative and contemplative states in mankind while imparting transcendental wisdom. This book is therefore equal parts a journey of self discovery by the author and a natural history and scientific discourse on the Pacific Gray whale. For my liking there are just a few too many experiences here such as this one by a marine biologist: "It was a calf and I could see its eye looking into my eyes...I knew we were talking..." Mr Spock mind-melds with Gracie the Humpback a la STAR TREK: THE VOYAGE HOME.

Although the author and others see "whales smile by my fingertips" and get all "misty eyed" and believe that the whales are "trying to save us from our human side" these sentimental and lyrical asides are simply a matter of writing style. Overall they do not spoil the book. There is sufficient science and history here to satisfy those looking for something other than a "save the whales / save the world" soft-sell. The defeat of Mitsubishi's proposed salt-works at one of the whale breeding lagoons and the story of Charles Melville Scammon are themes that run throughout the book. Mitsubishi represents the modern day commercial threat to the whales while Scammon was an old-time whale-butchering sea captain. Scammons' conversion from hunter to benefactor (he ended up writing the definitive book on gray whales) is a tale well told. Perhaps, like the author, he too looked into the EYE OF THE WHALE.

"Nature and books belong to the eyes that see them" (Ralph Waldo Emerson)

Dick Russell has produced an amazing chronicle of the life of the California Gray whale. This is a book that is not only important today but will hold a place of value and respect hundreds of years into the future. Sadly this book may most likely survive the species itself.
I have spent over two decades studying and working to protect the Gray whale and I've lead four major conservation expeditons to protect the species. The first was in 1981 to Siberia, the 2nd and 3rd to Neah Bay in 98 and 99 to oppose the Makah whale hunt and the 4th to San Ignacio in 2000 to oppose the development of an industrial salt processing scheme that would have damaged the breeding and calving homes of the Grays.
Dick Russell got all the facts right in the areas that I have intimate involvement with so I can safely assume that his facts in all other areas are equally investigated and thus correct.
This is a wonderful story and it is a great work of historical documentation both natural,social and cultural.
My life was changed by looking into the eye of a whale in 1975. I believe that Dick also caught a glimpse of the mystery, the majesty, the magic and the marvel of the mind of the whale reflected from the eye of one of these great and gentle giants.
For only a person who has seen into the eye of a whale could have written such an insightful book.
I intend to buy a dozen of Dick Russell's books for Christmas presents this year.

_Eye of the Whale: Epic Passage from Baja to Siberia_ (Simon and
Schuster) by Dick Russell is a brilliant and comprehensive account not
so much about the gray whale, but about how the humans and whales have
interacted over the centuries, and especially in the past few
decades. It is hard to imagine that there is any aspect of this
subject that Russell has not covered. The truly amazing part of the
gray whale�s story is that it had a terrible reputation in the
whaler�s day. It was called a devilfish, and was viewed as a
dangerous quarry, especially when it was protecting its young. It had
to be approached with fear (and this was realized in the Japanese
fisheries as well). It is a devilfish no longer. No one knows why, but
sometime in the 1970s the behavior of the whales changed. Into the
lagoons of Baja, the whales go in the winter to mate and to deliver
calves. The whales started becoming interested in the humans that had
put out in their boats to see them. They presented themselves at the
surface, turning on their sides to point an eye up to look at the
humans that used to kill them for oil and meat, and for baleen to
stiffen their corsets. They seemed to enjoy being scratched and
touched. Individual whales, returning year after year, seemed to
spread the behavior, which has become the norm. They even nudge the
calves toward the boats to introduce the new arrivals into the
activity.

All the eastern Pacific gray whales come to Baja in an
annual migration from the Siberian-Alaskan waters where they feed. It
is a 13,000 mile round trip, the longest annual migration of any
mammal, and Russell has traveled the length of that migration, and
more, to interview almost everyone who has researched the gray whale
or campaigned on its behalf. The result is a multifaceted,
wide-ranging tale that takes in important stories about the
interaction of humans and grays. The Makah tribe in Washington resumed
whaling with a controversial kill in 1999, possibly of a whale that
thought they were friendly. They get support from the Japanese, who
want to bring whaling back in general. The area of lagoons where the
whales calve was in danger of becoming a giant salt production
facility; Russell covers the anguish and triumphs of the
environmentalists pitted against huge commercial and governmental
foes. The grays have made a comeback, but seem to be less healthy; we
don�t know if we can blame warming of the waters or other causes, as
research on the whales is only in the beginning stages.

Best of all,
though, is that the book is full of attempts to describe just what
happens between two species as they regard each other. "Once you get
a chance to see these whales," says one observer, I think it is a
natural reaction to fall in love with them. And to want to do the
utmost so this continues to be a place where they can come and feel
safe and secure." Another: "The mother was just lying there as if
she was watching the young one, and sometimes she came up and rocked
the front of the boat. I must say it was sometimes a little bit
frightening. But then when she came and looked at us, you were not
scared at all, just happy. I can't explain it." A crusty marine
scientist reaches out to touch a whale for the first time, and
although no one has ever seen him do it before, he starts weeping. It
is an overwhelming experience that no one who has had it ever
forgets. The whales seem to have many mysteries to tell us. They can
be thankful that their ambassador, Dick Russell, and his imposing,
full, and readable book, are bringing to us their story.

The Fragile Edge by Julia Whitty combines a science journalist's capacity for a precise and illuminating description of undersea flora and fauna encountered in remoter parts of the Polynesian archipelago and a passionate appreciation for its peculiarities and ecological complexities with a philosopher's detachment and bird's eye view of the reefs and the communities that abut them. Your reviewer is a certified divemaster, licensed boat captain and underwater photographer and I read a lot of this stuff. This one is unique in its sensitivity, attention to detail, and the writer's personality that comes through. I've given two copies of the books to other divers in my family.

I grew up in this world of tropical coral reefs and sharks and tiny bright fish but that was over fifty years ago. Tonight as I sat on the deck of my house overlooking a bay in Washington's temperate Puget Sound, I finished Julia's book and felt those long ago times flood back. And I felt joy and sadness. Joy for the memories of reef sharks suddenly appearing in the Northest pass of the Truk Lagoon; and me swimming free a hundred yards from our skiff. Joy for Moorish Idols escaping into coral forest. Joy for just being there. And sadness, for a world dying before our eyes. People, we've got too many people. When will we figure that out?

But oh my! Can this lady write. Thanks.

What a treat to enter the underwater worlds of the South Pacific with documentary filmaker Julia Whitty as your guide! The writing is absolutely gorgeous: "The humphead wrasse who the Tahitians call mara and the French call Napoleon is an imposing fish up to seven feet long and four hundred and twenty pounds, with an overhanging forehead, thick lips, and a blue body overlaid with squiggly patterns of green and yellow that look like the inside of a crcuit board." It is easy enough to get lost in the descriptions of life in the reef, up close and personal, but Whitty doesn't stop there. She brings in philosophy, Darwin, yoga, the history of the people on the islands she decribes, and Buddhism, as she observes life in the reefs, so that the reader feels she is not merely observing what's before her but contemplating it, trying to understand its mysteries. She makes the more humorous sides of this underwater world come alive, all the while getting her message across of the dire straights the worlds coral reefs are currently in. She has a vast knowledge of fish and reef life but makes it accessable, even providing a glossary at the back for the layperson so you come away with new knowledge about worlds you might otherwise never know. I loved this book!!!

Ten years ago I had the opportunity to snorkel with a marine biologist in East Africa. He was studying the bleaching of coral reefs and his worries about the future of marine life as he knew it was palpable. As a writer I had to ask myself, now that I know, what do I do? Thank you Julia Whitty for giving voice the growing awareness among scientists that the fragile balances life depends on are being pushed so sadly out of whack. The elegance of Whitty's prose and the beauty of her images do justice to the majesty of our lovely but put upon planet. She combines the dispassion of science with the passion of art in a way many writers aspire to but few accomplish to such good effect. Whitty gives us the facts with which to reason and the poetry to make us care deeply. This is a breakthrough book everyone should read.

"All day we have been observing the surgeonfish..." Julia Whitty begins, and from that first sentence onward, the reader of "The Fragile Edge" is one of the party. Whitty is there with you, chuckling good-naturedly at the antics of an undersea creature or (more likely) of those crazy humans topside. In one of my favorite moments, an account of how the funky old hotel with its peculiar charms has been taken over by new owners whose pampered guests pay $500/night to lounge by the infinity pool is interrupted just at the moment when you think she might succumb to sentimentality or some other curmudgeonly temptation by her confession that, "I like the pool, too." Similarly, Whitty clearly and firmly presents her environmental concerns without, so to speak, wallowing in them. Instead of putting the book aside because you're tired of hearing about how the end of the world is at hand, you're motivated to keep swimming along with a guide whose curiosity and expertise extend to the natural history of molecular plants and animals, as well as the more glamorous sharks and dolphins, from Western science to Eastern metaphysics, and from dissolving atolls and bleached corals to the raw fish marinated in coconut milk served at a Tuvaluan wedding reception. Finally it's her love of the coral reefs she has come to know over many years of diving and study, rather than her fear that global warming will destroy them, that Whitty is most eager to share.

REVIEWED BY: Gayle Jacobson-Huset

I really loved this cleverly written book with the colorful, kid-friendly illustrations. Author Laura Crawford did an excellent job with her rhyming text that introduces each arctic animal and then builds on sentences that make for a fun read. I give this one a high five for its terrific text, storyline, and awesome, refreshing illustrations. If your children love water and animals, this is the book for them!

As with all Sylvan Dell books, there's a section at the end entitled "For Creative Minds" that is also available online. It contains sections on: "Arctic Waters", "The Inuit", "Arctic Animal Adaptations", "Polar Bears", "Walruses", "Seals", "Narwhals", and "Beluga Whales". There is also a section on: "Creative Sparks - Mix and Match Activity Book".

"In Arctic Waters" is an excellent book for giving young children a unique view of animals living in the cold waters of the far north. I used it for my preschoolers and it was great at showing them what is actually under the water as it shows a slice of the ocean rather than looking from the top down. Quite educational.

A fun book that introduces a preschooler to third grader about the Arctic animals and their relationship to the natives in the area. You can play this book both ways, as a fun rhyme for kids and as a more serious science topic for older kids. The book not only has the basic story line but also has additional materials in the back that explains the scientific and cultural significance of each character such as the Inuit's role in area.

-Kaycee Ogoc, Library Weekly

In Arctic Waters

What an enjoyable way to learn about Arctic sea and land animals in this rhyming tale! The book, created by author Laura Crawford, has the cadence and cumulative story of the rhyme "The House That Jack Built." It is wonderful that the charm and humor in the book is such that a young child can easily identify with each animal.

Ben Hodson's paintings wed the rhyming text perfectly. Children will delight in the expressions of each animal, expressions that tell the tale as much as the text. At the end of the book there is a mini encyclopedia where the inquisitive child can learn more about each animal. It can also be the basis of a classroom unit. Highly recommended for ages three to seven.

Parents, grandparents and teachers looking for a fun read for young children will embrace this new book by Laura Crawford, a Chicago-area [...] teacher. The book has the familiar rhythm and plot of The House That Jack Built, but the author has set this story in Arctic Waters on a floating chunk of ice. One by one the animals, including a fish, a blubbery thick beluga, a narwhal and more, get on the floating ice until it can hold no more. The attractive illustrations are just right. The story is fun to read aloud. Sure to become a favorite of young readers.

I am a big fan of Bill Peet! I didn't really discover him until I was a mom for a few years, but the first book I read was a great introduction to me, and I quickly checked out all the Bill Peet books in the local library. Our family has been collecting these little by little, and Kermit the Hermit is one of his best works. I have never read a Bill Peet book that was dissapointing. Kermit the Hermit shows genuine love and concern for all.

In addition to his marvelous children's stories, Bill Peet wrote an awesome autobiography--ideal for 8-12 year olds. I cannot imagine a young boy not being drawn into his story.

I found this book remaindered, and picked it up just because it was set in Monterey Bay. I was delighted to find that it was a terrific story, and that my daughter (age 2-1/2) loved it.

My only criticism is that some of the poetry is a bit strained, but it doesn't detract from the overall excellence. Great pictures, good characters, and a fine message.

And, by the way, the pictures very accurately portray Monterey Bay, both above and below the water.

This book feels like it is written by Dr. Suess, with the same cadence in the rhymes. The language is a tad more sophisticated, but both my son and I love the book! It is so much fun to read, I don't know who enjoys it more.

Bill Peet is a wonderful children's book author and Kermit The Hermit is a great example of his work. It is a 1965 story about a Hermit Crab who starts out the story as a selfish shellfish. Through an act of human kindness, he learns the emptiness of a self-centered life. Kermit devotes himself to repaying the favor and finds satisfaction in doing for others.

The book is a long rhyming poem with delightful color illustrations surrounding the text. This is a story that children and those who read to them are sure to enjoy.

This book was so awesome I felt like I was in Florida ! This story was about a girl named Brenna who really liked manatees. One day Dr. Mac
decided to take Maggie,Zoe,and Brenna to Florida to visit a manatee
rescue center,that needs money really bad.You will have to read the
book to find out what happens next. I really enjoyed this story because
I love animals,especially manatees!

This is the fourth book in the WILD AT HEART series about young vet volunteers. You've read about Maggie, Sunita, and David. This book is about Brenna, and manatees. Manatees are large marine mammals. They look something like floating elephants. They're related to elephants, too, as well as to aardvarks and hyraxes. Did you know that? Brenna did. She loves manatees. She did a school project on them and got an A+. Now she gets to travel by airplane to Florida with Dr. Mac and her two granddaughters, Maggie and Zoe, to work in a rescue mission for manatees. And she is jazzed! She takes along her camera with its zoom lens, and she can't wait to meet Dr. Mac's former pupil, Gretchen, who runs the rescue mission. Of course, her mother's parting words, "Be polite, watch your temper, and think before you open your mouth," get Brenna into trouble --- when she forgets them!

They no sooner arrive at the mission than Gretchen and her assistant Carlos get a phone call about a wounded manatee that needs help. Brenna wants to go along, and she makes Dr. Mac mad by asking Gretchen to let them. But Gretchen says it's okay. When they find the manatee, they discover that it's Violet, an old friend of Gretchen and Carlos. She's been struck by a boat. The propeller ripped into her back, broke her ribs, and punctured a lung. She's been floating, helpless and in pain, for weeks. Gretchen and Carlos don't know whether they can save her or not. When they get her back to the mission, Gretchen lets Dr. Mac and the girls watch the surgery.

While Violet is recuperating from the first surgery, Gretchen takes Dr. Mac and the girls on a floating restaurant cruise to the Gulf of Mexico. Is that neat or what? While Brenna tries to figure out which fork to use (she has three), she notices an abandoned baby manatee thrashing in the water. Gretchen uses Brenna's camera with its telephoto lens to see that the baby is tangled in the rope of a crab pot. The tide is coming in, and the baby will drown unless someone rescues him. Gretchen puts on a life jacket and jumps overboard. Brenna thinks she needs help and jumps in, too --- without a life jacket. Gretchen isn't happy about that, and Dr. Mac is steamed about it.

They rescue the baby and take it to the mission. Carlos says Brenna can name him. She names him Key Lime. That's her pie that was melting while she helped Gretchen rescue him. Key Lime needs an adopted mother, and he wants Violet to volunteer. But Violet is getting worse, so Gretchen and Carlos have to operate on her again. But there is even more terrible news than that. The mission is in debt. It needs hundreds of thousands of dollars just to survive, and Gretchen's bank loan is denied. Even if they can save Violet and Key Lime, they can't save the mission. Or can they? I'll give you some clues: Brenna's camera and a baseball game. Got it? Then you'd better read the book!

--- Reviewed by Tamara Penny

I absolutely LOVE any Wild at Heart Books, and I can never put them down. I would strongly suggest that you buy this book for you, friend, or a family member. Anyone could find something that they enjoy in these books!!!

This book is very intriguing, I couldn't put it down! Brenna and two other friends (Zoe and Maggie) went to Florda to study manatees. When they get there they meet a marine biologist who works at a rescue center for manatees and other animals. This place needs ALOT of money to stay open. When Brenna takes a picture of a famous baseball player driving his boat too fast where manatees may be, and then shows it to him after his baseball game... Did she just save the rescue center? I suggest this book to anyone who likes water animals, and alot of adventure.

I think this book is AWESOME it's my faivorite in the series !
It's about this girl named Brenna who gose to Florida with some other volunteers from Wild at Heart animal clinic to reaserch Manatees and really makes a diference. I would recamend this book to any persone that likes water animals or just wants a Great book.

A really cool little book. Worth the price. Great colors and fun information. DVD works well.

My sisters and I loved reading the book and looking at the pictures. We saw the pictures come to life when we watched the DVD. We think that all kids will enjoy learning about ocean life if they have this book.

This title was originally purchased for the library that I work in. I reviewed the title for the collection and enjoyed it so much that I purchased a copy for my nephew. It is very informative as well as entertaining. The still photography and video are exceptionally well-done. I think it's a book and movie that kids will enjoy over and over.

Cynthia

The Ocean Life From A to Z Book and DVD is much more than I hoped when I purchased it. I was not sure how good the DVD would be due to the low price. I was delighted to see not only a very beautiful and thorough book with georgeous photos and lots of scientific information, but an equally well-done full-length DVD. The main program on the DVD goes through the ocean telling all about many wonderful creatures and how tings work, showing multiple (in most cases) examples for each letter of the alphabet. The cinematography is excellent, and many creatures I had never seen before, even though we have studied the ocean a lot in our home-school. The DVD even has two extra little movies that are especially enjoyable for children. They get to see other children swimming and playing in the water as the narrator encourages them to pretend "you are a dolphin", etc. The second extra program is a chance to meet the photographer/diver. She is really passionate about the ocean and relates well to kids! It also tells about conservation and encourages good stewardship of our natural resources. This product is extremely well-done for children! I love it too (not a bit boring for adults). My just-turned 5 year-old and almost 9 year-old sons both love it! This is one of those things that stretches both up and down in age suitability. I would guess it would be enjoyed by very young to older kids (3 - 12+ ?). It is helpful for learning the alphabet, but is sooo much more. It is thorough, as each letter usually shows more than one type of creature. I highly recommend this for curious kids who love to learn and appreciate the beauty of God's creation. (This product is not religious by the way, but I am.) Katie, home-school mom of 3 sons

Many science and nature videos aimed at children offer little more than pretty pictures. Most A-B-C films merely recite a list of words chosen to match the letters, dressed up with brief and painfully dull commentary. Imagine our delight (no, our amazement) at this combination of spectacular videography and deep. instructive narration. Annie's voice and narrative pace are well suited to young viewers, but she delivers a great deal of information in a way that respects a child's ability and desire to learn. Every creature she introduces is described in ways that make it clearly, fascinatingly different from the others. Our son insists that we be quiet so he can hear every word.

On top of all this information quality, the videography is simply gorgeous. I don't know how she finds such crystalline water and beautiful subjects but these are the best underwater images we've ever seen. We cannot recommend this highly enough.

You just have to see it to believe it. It is the most amazing underwater photography I have ever seen. Fantastic!!! It's the perfect coffee table book for ocean lovers.

Roger Steene's "Oceanic Wilderness" is a fantastic book because the photos are of such high quality. There are amazing photos of many kinds of shrimps, crabs, worms and other invertebrates. I liked it because is was NOT full of endles photos taken while the diver was lying on the bottom looking up at the surface and the passing schools of fish. There are a limited number of such photos that one can look at without becoming bored.
If you've never bought a coral reef book for your library, then you must buy this one - forget the rest this is the best!

This is an outstanding collection of underwater images, mostly macro images from Papua New Guinea and Indonesia. The photographic quality of the images is excellent.

It is a fascinating book. Many of the images record extremely rare animals and unusual events: all kinds of mating; anemones capturing and eating starfish; lionfish hunting in packs; fish with strange jaws gaping; nudibranchs hunting each other, etc.

One of the really nice features of this book is the way it lays out 12 or 24 different variants of a theme juxtaposed together on a page: 24 different colour variations of the same nudibranch, or 12 variants of the beautiful patterns on the tails of mantis shrimp. These displays are beautiful and fascinating.

This is a wonderful gift for a scuba diver or for anyone with an interest in the underwater world. The experience is a lot like chatting with an experienced marine biologist and photographer in the bar after a good day's diving. I've done almost a thousand dives, but while reading Steene's book I kept gasping "I didn't even know that fish did that!"

great book. as a scuba diver you see lots of different and strange fish and other creatures.you dont even touch on what all this book shows.its really interesting to know that you might see one of these if you know where to look.the book is put together well and the colors are great.its a good conversation book.great for the coffee table.

This iconic book features so many incredibly weird and beautiful creatures from Indonesia. Roger's ability to show incredible detail using 35mm film is truly astounding. Most of the marine animals included in this book will soon only exist on paper, sadly. Get out there and buy one!

I bought this because my son came home from Kindergarten one day having memorized the poem. We had to have the book! The poem is so sweet, and the illustrations are charming.

This book is the greatest! The fun rhyming poem keeps my 15 month-old son entertained for hours. He loves the bright pictures and helping me turn the pages. It's such a short and catchy poem that even when he turns the pages quickly I can keep up because I know it by heart. Even our family members can recite along!!! The best part is that when I ask him 'Where's the Puffin?' he can find the book no matter where he is. A fun and great choice!

The charming language and addictive rhythm captured my 3-year-old daughter's imagination. "Then along came the fishes and they said, 'If you wishes, you can have us for playmates, instead of for tea.'" Not only did she memorize it all on her own, she loves to play with the words, inserting various other food items for the pancakes which the puffin ultimately chooses instead of eating fish.

Adroitly written by Florence Page Jaques with an "easy reader" text, and enhanced with the artwork of Shari Halpern, There Once Was A Puffin is a brightly illustrated picture book about a lonely puffin. At first he ate fish, but he had no one to play with - so he befriended the fish he once ate, and learned to eat pancakes instead. An upbeat story told with energy and gusto, There Once Was A Puffin is a welcome addition to any school or community library collection.

I love this book. My children are now in college but I can still recite most of the poem. I would love to have the words to the poem if anyone is willing to e-mail them to me. If this book was in stock I would buy several to have on hand as presents and keep at least one for myself.