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A portion of the profits from any books
ordered
will be donated to The Coral
Reef Alliance.
Prices indicated below are valid at the time of posting, though Amazon.com may change them.
 Coral Reefs: Cities Under the Sea by Richard C. Murphy. To a diver, a healthy reef is a remarkable symphony of
equilibrium and interdependence. Just what makes it so is the topic of the beautifully
written and illustrated book by Dr. Richard C Murphy, the director of science
and education for Jean Michelle Cousteau’s Ocean Futures Society. In helping
us view the complexity of the reef, he gives us endless facts to help us understand
what’s really happening below: the upside down jellyfish is upside down so the
algae in its tentacles will be exposed to the sunlight ... fish change colors
when they sleep because it takes too much energy to maintain their daytime colors
... some nudibranchs use brilliant hydroid-like colors to warn predators -- including
divers -- that they can sting like a hydroid. To describe coral cities, Murphy’s
chapters cover Power Plants and Farms, Waste Management and Recycling, Construction
and Public Housing, Conflict and Cooperation, and Social Security. It’s
a fascinating way to understand the reef, and his 172 full color photographs
make this both a beautiful coffee table book and excellent late night reading.
Hardbound
$45, softbound
$34.95. |
 The
Sharkwatchers Handbook: A Guide to Sharks and Where to See Them by Mark
Carwardine and Ken Watterson: Not only covers much about the habits
and activities of sharks, but also it provides good ideas about photographing
them. Best of all, they describe twenty-five shark species in detail, and devote
more than half the book to a discussion, maps and description of 267 worldwide
sites where divers can encounter sharks from land based of liveaboard operations.
Hardbound, 288
pages, $17.47 |
 Secret
Sea by Burt Jones, Maurine Shimlock. Think
about it: doesn't every dive photo book come with a black cover? Not Secret
Sea -- this one looks a bit like the Beatles' White Album. I consider this
book a classic. Another high quality underwater photo book? Yes, but it's
more than that. The photos are exquisite and will be enjoyed by everyone
who appreciates beauty, but this book will really thrill dive aficionados.
Burt Jones and Maurine Shimlock have captured the rare, the bizarre, and
the coveted of the underwater world. It's not just the weird and the wild,
it's the outrageously wonderful photos of the weird and wild. In addition,
this book has real text -- text that paints images of marine behavior and
scenes that can only come from staying in the water until algae starts
to grow on your wetsuit. A lot of care and expertise went into this book,
and I thoroughly enjoy its results. If I could have only one coffee table
book, this would be it. Would someone please give it to me for Christmas?
Hardbound, 12 x 12, 164 pages, 153 color photos. List $85.00. Order
now. |
 Essential Guide to Composition
by Jim Church. Composition, Composition, Composition.
That's the secret of winning underwater photography. And, yours is about
to improve measurably by reading the new,long-awaited book by Jim Church,
his Essential Guide to Composition: A Simplified Approach to Taking Better
Underwater Pictures. His chapter headings tell you exactly what you'll
learn: what attracts the viewer's eye, lenses and perspectives, finding
underwater subjects, the five basic wide angle shots, shooting divers
ain't easy, a quickie guide to modeling, composing close-ups, when do
you that the picture, working with patterns, adding a touch of grace and
special lighting effects. Stan Waterman says this book is "key to
improvement for any aspiring underwater photographer," and Undercurrent
says "amen" to that. 136 pages, paper, $19.95 |
| . If you're headed south out of San Diego, Fishes of the Tropical Eastern Pacific by Gerald R. Allen, D. Ross Robertson, is the fish guide you need. With 324 photo-packed pages covering 680 species of sharks and sailfish, wrasses and razorfish, pipefish and pearlfish, this is the ultimate ID book for the Baja, Costa Rica, the Galapagos, and the Sea of Cortez. Sponsored by the Smithsonian Institute Drs. Gerald Allen and Ross Robertson took years to produce this definitive volume that describes and comments on the remarkable behavior of these critters. Hardbound, $85. | In a Sea of Dreams by Christopher Newbert, Birgitte Wilms. Chris Newbert's latest book, In a Sea of Dreams, is a masterpiece, even a step above his impressive, award-winning Within a Rainbowed Sea. Working with his wife Birgitte Wilms, he produces art, not photos, in museum-quality reproductions. Through his eye you see nudibranchs as you've never seen them before. An ordinary sea squirt becomes an extraordinary alien; a thorny oyster mantle will transport you on an acid trip and even the shooter's staple, the clownfish, is captured as no other photographer has managed ... well, I'm pumped up, but you've got to see this book to believe it. When I want to turn on friends to diving, this is the book I show them. Photographers will love the last section, in which Newbert shares his notes on each image. Hardbound, 11x12, 207 pages, $85.00. |
| Diving off the Beaten Track by Robert Forrest Burgess. Undercurrent writes about great places that don't run ads, and Bob Burgess covers many of our favorites in his Diving off the Beaten Track: St. George's Caye and Manta Resort in the out islands of Belize, Cayos Cochinos in Honduras, undiscovered sites of the Bahamas, and many more. You'll read about Fred Good and Gladys Howard (a couple of our favorite hoteliers) and 66 of the best dives. Excellent reference to help you pick your next secret spot. Paperback, 128 pages, 100+ color photos. |  Don't
Stop the Carnival by Herman Wouk. Ever wanted
to run from it all and open your own little retreat on a Carribean Island?
Sure you have, and this zany novel is for you. Read the travails of a
New Yorker who suffers through water shortages, snotty and drunken guests,
a slow-moving staff, and officious bureaucrats while he struggles with
his island dream. Written by Herman Wouk, the author of The Caine Mutiny,
it was once a mainstay in the bookcase if every tropical retreat and talk
of every traveling diver. Recently reissued, Don't Stop the Carnival is
great reading. $15.00 |
| Beating the Bends by Alex Brylske. No one's more expert on dive safety than Alex Brylske, and no book is more expert on every diver's nightmare - the bends. To help you judge your risk, Beating the Bends has a excellent section on susceptibility factors, a thorough analysis of tables, and a no-nonsense evaluation of computers. Brylske looks at the latest evidence on safety stops, ascent rates, flying after diving, and subtle signs that say you've been hit. I'd call this a must for any serious diver. Paperback, 51/2 x 81/2, 120 pages. |
Diving
Science: Essential Physiology for Medicine and Divers by
Michael Strauss & Igor Aksenov. A superb book for serious students of scuba diving.
Two hyperbaric physicians – Michael B. Strauss, MD, and Igor V. Aksenov
– write in depth about such topics as adaptation in blood and muscle tissue
to improve oxygen carrying and storage, meeting the challenge of the cold water
environment, psychological and physiological problems associated with descent,
being on the bottom, and ascent, and much more. While written with the lay reader
in mind, there's plenty of science supporting every conceivable bit of diving
science. This 394 page paperback.. You can order
this book through us, and we will share the profit with the Coral Reef Alliance.
Paperback, Amazon.com price: $19.01.
|
Watching
Fishes: Understanding Coral Reef Fish Behavior by Roberta
Wilson, James Q. Wilson. Your buddies can probably name
the reef fish, but read this volume and you can explain what those critters are
actually doing -- and why. This fascinating book describes why and how fish change
color, how they smell and socialize, the difference between day and night behavior,
even how damsels cultivate algae patches -- which is why they attach you when
you fin by. Watching Fishes, Understanding Coral and Reef Fish Behavior is written
for divers, not scientists, by Roberta and James Q. Wilson. They describe in lively
nonfiction prose the behavior of basslets to blennies, clownfish to crinoids,
damsels to drumfish. Perfect for between-dive reference. Paperback, 6x9, 274 pages.
|
 Secrets
of the Ocean Realm by Michele Hall, Howard Hall,
Peter Benchley. A spectacular collection of underwater
photography and riveting text, Secrets of the Ocean Realm by Howard and
Michelle Hall is a stunning achievement. The work, a companion book to
the award winning PBS documentary (coming up June 10 and August 5), represents
two and a half years traveling the oceans in search of rare and unique
animals. While images of everything from scorpionfish to scalloped hammerheads
set new standards in fine photography, the Halls' very personal text puts
you alongside them for every shot they take. They dive with people you
may meet in your travels -- Bob Halstead in Papua New Guinea, Avi Klapfer
in the Cocos, Norbert Wu, Marty Snyderman -- and describe adventures along
the same reefs you too may dive. Indeed, the Halls' cameras capture behaviors
that I only dare to dream seeing. Hardbound, coffee table book, 10x11
inches, 176 pages, 120 color photos ...a steal at $39.95 |
 The
Future is Wild, A Natural History of the Future by Dougal Dixon,
John Adams Ever seen a reef glider, its colorful gills flowing behind, paddling through the greenish waters of an algal reef. Or a huge, 30-foot ocean phantom, whose enormous air-filled sail lets the wind push it along so its enormous tentacles can trap reef gliders. Or duck-sized flying fish, or the swampus, an octopus that leaves the deep to forage on the shore. No you haven’t, because they only exist on the pages of The Future is Wild, A Natural History of the Future. This fascinating book is filled with 110 images of the land and sea creatures we might see in five million or even two hundred million years. By taking characteristics of current fish and mammals and projecting them into various futures, the authors and scientists from Stanford, Cornell, and other leading universities give us divers a remarkable look at what we’ll never see. Read this and the next time you go diving you’ll look upon the fish in a remarkable new way, projecting them many eons ahead. 160 pages, paper-bound, $17.47 |
Coral
Reef Fishes: Dynamics and Diversity in a Complex Ecosystem: by
Peter F. Sales. An excellent scientific book for divers wanting to increase their
expertise about coral reef fish. Included are provocative reviews covering the
major areas of reef fish ecology, behavior, feeding habits, etc. Coral Reef
Fishes is an important resource for all whose work or interests include coral
reef fishes. Order
through us, get Amazon.coms best price and a good hunk of the profit will
be donated to the Coral Reef Alliance.
|
Looking for something else? Find books on virtually anything about diving at Amazon.com |
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