Admit it... we've all done it. There is an ocean related book sitting there on the bargain shelf at Barnes & Noble... you don't really need it, but c'mon, it's only $5. Why not?
My most recent of these purchases (we don't need to explore exactly how many of those I have sitting on my own shelves at home) was The Anatomy of the Sea by Dr. David Ponsonby & Professor Georges Dussart (2005). Part of what drove me into this book was its nice hardcover and small package, about 6" X 8" and "over 600 creatures of the deep" as the cover so gloriously proclaims. I was also piqued by the author's both being employed at a Christian college and wondered what point of view they might have taken.
But, alas, it end up being just that - a useless impulse buy. The book utilizes illustrations that go back hundreds of years and the quality of many of those pictures are nearly impossible to decipher. This also means you will often come across incredibly inaccurate depictions. The informational sections, although more up to date, are equal to the "fun fact" sections of a childrens' book, but without the cool pictures those usually have. If you are in high school and desperately trying to buffer the references section of a research paper, then I guess the book has a purpose. I would probably give it to a smart 11-yr old who wants to be a marine biologist, but even then, it could only be part of the present.
RATING: ~ (1 out of 5 waves) because there really is no reason to actually buy it, but it might be fun to share the old fashioned pictures with people who have seen the real thing & can make fun of it too
Today, embrace the compulsive shopper in you - but be sure to keep a salary cap on it!
-Callie
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