Customer Reviews

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Sharks

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i did not realize that this book would contain such a wealth of information. the title is misleading, because the contents include very extensive scholarly research , written in easily understandable and entertaining prose.
You are shown a huge trove of information regarding sharks, the various types, their feeding habits, how they mate, where they travel,where to see them underwater, popular myths, how to fish for them, the dangers and pleasures of diving etc etc
I recommend this book to those who have any curiosity about sharks. You can learn the real facts, and a vast amount of information-in fact,sibly more than you ever wanted to know.
The only thing missing is recipes.

While the author has created a fairly comprehensive, easy to read work peppered with life experiences that add considerable interest and charm, unfortunately this book is also shot through with inconsistencies and some whopper mistakes. In a single read, in which I wasn't deliberately looking for mistakes, I encountered the following statements:

"Mammals are carnivores and so are several species of sharks." While it's true that some mammals are carnivores, clearly not all mammals are carnivores. Oops!: somebody better tell the bunnies to stop eating grass and start on beef!

"These adventurous fish become the progenitors of spiders, amphibians, insects, reptiles such as dinosaurs, four-legged animals, and ultimately us." Ouch! This is the first - and only - time I've ever heard a theory of evolution in which vertebrates spawned invertebrates.

While these are pretty heinous mistakes that draw every other so-called fact in the book into question, there are a number of inconsistencies that also lead one to wonder about the text's scientific accuracy as well. For instance, the book contains no less than four different estimates of the number of shark species, at least five different statistics on the size of great white sharks, two different maximum lengths and weights for whale sharks, incorrect scientific names and names of famous inventors, and inaccuracies like this: "as far away as 1,000 yards (about the size of a football field)".

In the end, someone dropped the ball between the writing, fact-checking, editing, and printing. The publishing company advised this book is now out of print, and these may be some of the last available. So while I hate to sound critical, if you're looking for dependable scientific information this isn't the book for you. You deserve better for your money. If you're not concerned about accuracy and want an easy read, go ahead. Just don't use the book for any term papers....

i did not realize that this book would contain such a wealth of information. the title is misleading, because the contents include very extensive scholarly research , written in easily understandable and entertaining prose.
You are shown a huge trove of information regarding sharks, the various types, their feeding habits, how they mate, where they travel,where to see them underwater, popular myths, how to fish for them, the dangers and pleasures of diving etc etc
I recommend this book to those who have any curiosity about sharks. You can learn the real facts, and a vast amount of information-in fact,sibly more than you ever wanted to know.
The only thing missing is recipes.