Customer Reviews

Field Guide to Lake Monsters, Sea Serpents, and Other Mystery Denizensof the Deep

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Coleman & Huyghe's "The Field Guide to Lake Monsters, Sea Serpents, and Other Mystery Denizens of the Deep" is an attempt to develop a classification system for cryptic and relict water "monsters." Coleman, a prolific writer in the realm of cryptozoology. takes some of his previous, less focused works on mystery creatures and looks solely at the elusive deep water creatures. The success of this work is highly mixed, however, leaving readers starved for more.

PROS:

* The authors revamp previous attempts by past cryptozoologists at creating a systematic categorization of creatures. In this way, they lay out a "field guide" similar to a field guide for birds that would make distinctions between woodpeckers and owls. For their system, they opt for creatures that hew to
--Classic Sea Serpent
--Waterhorse
--Mystery Cetacean
--Giant Shark
--Mystery Manta
--Great Sea Centipede
--Mystery Saurian
--Cryptid Chelonian
--Mystery Sirenian
--Giant Beaver
--Mystery Monitor
--Dinosauria
--Mystery Salamander
--Giant Octopus

* The book covers a wide-ranging variety of creatures and does a good job in globe trotting.

* Each type within the classification system is given some preliminary info, overviews of well-known sightings, plus a few expanded narratives containing more specific information.

* The book's layout is nicely conceived, with an effort made to appear scholarly enough to lend credence to the field of cryptozoology.

* There are plenty of interesting encounters listed, enough to keep folks interested and turning pages.

* The maps listed for each encounter are nicely designed and are a good frame for each monster.

* The bibliography is extensive.

CONS:

* While the illustrations of the types within the classification system are well done and the maps are helpful, the utter lack of photographs or illustrations related to each case depicted in a book like this is a major disappointment.

* No matter how the authors spin it, the classification system they've developed is no better than similar ones given in the past.

* Coleman lifts big chunks of his previous books for this one. It seems like many passages from his 1999 book "Cryptozoology A to Z" are reproduced in their entirety (or with minimal modification.)

* Some of the narratives of encounters are mentioned in the intro material for each monster type, but are then reiterated in individual examples that follow, too often adding little to what was given in summary before.

* Not enough credence is given to debunking some of the sightings listed here.


The book concludes with a basic summary, info on where to see cryptids like these, a summary of worldwide sightings based on continent, some background on famous carcasses and "globsters," helps for the ridicule factor that monster sighters incur, plus creature characteristics monster sighters should look for if they should happen to spy something unusual.

If you are new to the study of cryptid creatures, this is an excellent survey to start with. However, despite being an intriguing book, its lacks prevent it from being the last word on the topic.

From the authors of "The Field Guide to Bigfoot, Yeti and Other Mystery Primates Worldwide", this book tackles the various sea serpents, lake monsters and other aquatic cryptids in the same manner. It's not exactly an in-depth scientific survey, but it is a pretty good introduction to the phenomena, and it does try to cover a vast array of hypothetical species. We begin with a history of the sea serpent, going through important historical sightings, early studies of sea serpents, the discovery of the giant squid, and Heuvelmans attempted categorization. In these sections the book reads pretty much as a general history of Cryptozoology, so most readers will probably be familar with the material.

The real meat of the book comes in from the "species profiles", in which Coleman and Huyghes showcase the different cryptids they came up with in their system. Some come from Heuvelmans' studies (with a new look at the "supper otter") while others are entirely new. Each write-up includes an illustration, maps, an overview of the creature and it's habitats, range and behavior, and a few brief sightings. All in all, over a dozen species are covered. We are presented with the familar "classic sea serpent", the "water horse" (maned, long necked seals according to the authors), Heuvelman's "sea centipede" (a multi-finned whale), marine crocodiles and giant sharks, sea turtles and octopi. More exotic sea creatures mentioned included the Trinty Alps giant salamander, Mokole-Mbembe (a surviving dinosaur said to dwell in the Congo), the Buru (a possibly extinct monitor lizard from the Himalayas), surviving populations of Steller's sea cows, a giant beaver seen in Utah's Salt Lake and unidentified species of manta rays and whales.

Obviously some cryptids are more believable than others, but all are given a good amount of space, along with the authors attempts at finding a scientific explanation for them. In the back of the book, we are given some interesting material such as an essay about the latitudes in which lake monsters are found, some accounts about "globsters" and other unidentified carcasses that have washed ashore, and a list of locations around the world in which sea, lake and river monsters can be sighted. On small comment is that several of the creatures mentioned in this list aren't mentioned at all in the text, but thats a small gripe.

Ultimately, this is a fun little book, especially for the lay reader who wants to know whether or not there is any possibility of discovering sea monsters in this day and age. Obviously some of the claims need to be taken with a grain of salt, but this book still provides a fun and interesting read. However, for the reader with a serious interest in cryptozoology, this book isn't going to replace Heuvelmans' monumental "In the Wake of Sea Serpents". Its still worth including in your personal library, but it's not the be-all, end-all word on marine cryptids.

"Lake Monsters and Sea Serpents" is without question the paragon of books ever written on the subject of large unexplained sea and lake phenomena. Serious researchers owe everything to Bernard Heuvelman's "In the Wake of Sea Serpents" naturally, but this book goes several steps beyond Heuvelman's masterpiece.

This book, as with all of Mr. Coleman's books, doesn't try to document every single sighting ever made. It instead documents a few examples to enhance the overall purpose of the book. In doing so, we are presented with an all inclusive outline of every single lake and sea monster that ever reared it's head above water.

Mr. Coleman takes the liberty of revamping the categories of water monsters in a more up to date and pragmatic manner. This modernized enhancement to the classic types of water monsters is at once comfortable and surprising.

The book is filled with illustrations of the different types of creatures as well as maps logging their sightings. And as we have come to expect with Mr. Coleman's books, the appendix and bibliography at the end of the book make it alone worth the cover price.

It is beyond imagination how anyone from the arm chair curious, to the hard core researchers can do without this book. Mr. Coleman has done all the work for us, we have only to pick up the torch and carry on the investigations.

The book is a collection of sea monsters accounts and a classification that updates Heuvelmans classic book of 1968. An good introductory text, experienced hunters in the deep will find a number of novelties not published in books so far. It mentions recent discoveries of large marine animals, recent promblematic corpses, new estimates of unknown animal numbers and as well as new tidbits of monsterology from around the world. Most of these items have not been compiled before in a aquatic monster book so these alone make the book worth buying for the reader interested in more than the standard Heuvelmans derived material in most sea monster coffee table books.

Most the book is in the form of an Encyclopedia with sea monsters broken up into types that are then described with reference to one or two encounters. Offering both new sightings and a new classification this section is of interest again most to the sea monster familiar reader rather than the layperson. Some of the categories are unequivocal even if giant beavers, sharks and octopuses don't exist, their existence as distinct categories of observation cannot really be gainsaid. Coleman and Huyghes like Heuvelmans wander into more problematic territory when they move into sea serpents. They divide them into two basic types with subcategories. Such shoehorning perhaps prevents objective evaluation of observations (which are after all, all that we have) and may cause important details to be overlooked. Nonetheless this section is a fun controversial read.

A fine text which whilst accessible to all will also be appreciated by the more advanced scholar of marine monsters.

The thing that appealed to me the most about this book was the fact that Loren Coleman and Patrick Huyghe write in a manner that a layman can understand. The material they cover in depth, but they describe things in such a way that you don't need a degree in zoology or in biology to understand. That being said, they DO go into enough detail to please the more educated reader.
There is a ten page bibliography that just invites you to dig deeper into the sources they quote, along with several other chapters listed in an "Afterword". This serves to expand out the 14 varieties of monsters listed under "Type Descriptions", which are introduced by way of a forty-odd page introduction.
For those who are familiar with Loren Coleman's style of writing, this is another enjoyable trip down a familiar stream, and is highly recommended.

Loren Coleman comes through again with an informative book about more sea monsters than you can shake a harpoon at! Thanks, Loren!

This book is a great introduction to the mesteries of the deep. Coleman gives the reader a good history of the Jurassic animals - sea turtles, marine crocodiles, sea centipede's, giant sharks, monitors, giant beavers, dinosaurs, salamanders. Etc.
Some of them lasted until present time. Now how about Lake Monsters and Sea Serpents? There is of course no proof of their existence, but they are certainly intriguing... Overall is a truly interesting read. Check also How to Read Egyptian Hieroglyphs: A Step-by-Step Guide to Teach Yourself, Revised Edition

Depending on what you mean by sea monsters Coleman and Huyghe's Field Guide to Lake Monsters, Sea Serpents, and Other Mystery Denizens of the Deep is an adequate introduction into the realm of mysteries of the deep. Starting with the history of these beasts carrying on to modern times introducing the reader with monsters such as sea centipede's, marine crocodiles, giant sharks, sea turtles, octopi, giant beavers, monitors, dinosaurs, and salamanders. Certainly the Jurassic seas were filled with all kinds of marine reptiles that if they were alive today would fit the description of a sea serpent. However, these creatures seemed to have disappeared about the same time the dinosaurs met their end roughly 65 million years ago. More recently the zeuglodon, a primitive form of whale, might easily be mistaken for a sea serpent if it had been alive today, though it is a mammal, not a reptile.

In the 19th century an unscrupulous promoter actually cobbled together several zeuglodon skeletons and exhibited them as an extinct sea serpent. Zeuglodons are found in the fossil record as recently 37 million years ago. Can we find more recent fossil evidence for sea serpent-type creatures? It will be hard. The best place to find ancient sea creature fossils are in ancient sea beds. The geology of the planet changes so slowly that most of the more recent sea beds, where we would expect to find evidence for any sea serpent-like creature that has developed over the last few million years, are still at the bottom of the oceans and inaccessible to us. A lack of evidence is not proof of existence, of course, so what we have in Monsters Sea Serpents Other myst Denizens Deepare is simply tantalizing stories. Suggestive and intriguing, but until somebody comes up with a well-preserved body, there is no proof.

I have had this book for a few years now and have pulled it out on many an occasion out of curiosity of places I've been to or heard about.
It is written in an easy to read format and the general illustrations of the many beasts are helpful to picture what people have seen in the mind's eye. The maps are also helpful if you visit these places so you can pinpoint the main areas of sightings.
The book could have been a little better if the author had included at least one photo or drawing of each creature from the witnesses, but otherwise it is an excellent book.
I highly recommend it to anyone interested in the mystery creatures that swim the deeps of this world!

The Field Guide to Lake Monsters, Sea Serpents and Other Mystery Denizens of the Deep is probably the most important contribution to its field since the publication of Bernard Heuvelmans' classic, In the Wake of the Sea Serpents. At 358 pages, the book is packed with information on a whole range of serpent encounters spanning both the globe and the centuries. Coleman and Huyghe's title is a scholarly one, but is written in a style that both the newcomer and those that have long been fascinated by its subject will enjoy. I think it's important to stress, too, that the authors obviously care passionately about their research and Field Guide is not just "another" book on monsters. Rather, Coleman and Huyghe - following in Heuvelmans' footsteps - have examined the available data both long and hard, and have proposed their own classification of elusive animals that they believe explains the sea serpent and lake monster mysteries of our world. To give you a couple of examples, there are sections in the book on giant octopuses; terrifying creatures resembling huge alligators (classified in the book as "Mystery Saurian"); still-surviving dinosaurs; gargantuan lizards; Manta Rays; and even giant beavers! Not only that: the book is literally packed with little-known accounts and sightings, provides data on the top places to see lake monsters and sea serpents, and includes much welcome drawings and diagrams of the beasts in question. If you're even remotely interested in its subject matter, I'd urge you to grab a copy of this book right now. Surpassing Heuvelmans' mighty tome, The Field Guide to Lake Monsters, Sea Serpents and Other Mystery Denizens of the Deep is the definitive book on the unknown creatures that lurk beneath the waves.