Customer Reviews

The Jaws of Death: Sharks as Predator, Man as Prey

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This book is one of the best I've been able to find on sharks, and I could not put it down! I must have read it over three times already just to remember all the information it contains!

It has detailed pictures and information on shark anatomy, favored myths about sharks, factual accounts of shark attacks, some information on other animals such as crocs and killer whales, and xavier puts forth several facts and theories about shark behavior. In the back it also contains an encyclopedia of sharks.

This is not a book for those with weak stomachs, since the pictures are very graphic of those attacked by sharks, even though most of which were only 'investigative bites'(and people get struck by lightning more often than attacked by sharks).

Since it was originally copyrighten in 1991, there are one or two new shark facts that are missing in this book(as opposed to the many facts that are usually missing in other shark books), but this is still the best for its time, and one of the best informative books for the present.

I would suggest this book for anyone deeply interested in sharks. It answers alot of questions and asks many other thought-provoking ones, keeping the reader hooked from cover to cover.

i am also a person that could be concidered " obsessed" with sharks. I am only a 14 year old girl and ever since i was eight or nine i have been highly facinated with sharks. Everyday when i come home from school i study shark. i collect teeth and news paper clippings and i take notes from every book i can find. This book just happens to be one that i couldn't peel my eyes away from. It is a facinating book that is very hard to put down. It kept me interested throughout it and it should be highly recognised.

The Jaws of Death was an amazing book. For all the techincal information on the animal's biology, I found it to be an easy read. Although, I'm probably bias, because I've always found sharks to be interesting.

Maniguet gives countless examples of shark attacks, and then explains why the shark might have attacked. It's a nice insight into their thinking. Numerous diagrams of the shark's anatomy help with explaining the complex sensory organs. They are absoluting incredible!

This is a great book for anyone who is really intrigued by these beautiful animals. Even if you don't find them to be the most amazing creatures, you will after flipping through this book.

Maniguet covers just about every aspect of sharks, and from a perspective of human contact. One long chapter covers shark attacks on humans, while the rest of the book covers anatomy, behaviour, and human interface, with some attacks interspersed. The book is technical in parts, but not too much so. I was looking for a factual book on sharks and shark attacks, not sensational but not boring, and this was perfect.

Although known as the swimming death of the seas Xavier Maniguet ties to explain the truth about sharks. He also tries to close a gap between this perfect fitted animal and its status of a killer-machine. Especially by facing the reader with some horrifying photographs of human shark-attack victims. But the book also shows in a scientific and breathtaking way the other strange side of these misunderstood animals and let sharks not look like a man-eating machine but also as an important member in our ecosystem. For those who are really interested in sharks this paper is a MUST! And for me who faced a real Great White once in South Africa it is even more than that.

This is one of the BEST shark books I have ever read: very informative and educational, plus great pictures. So glad I purchased it and, actually, I couldn't wait until I received it! I definitely recommend this book to anyone who studies or enjoys reading about sharks. I can't say enough good things about it!

The book "Jaws of Death" is a good book, but it goes too much in how deadly sharks are, and not how the shark is a important part of the ocean ecosystem. Xavier Maniquet is a good author, I just wish more was focused on Great Whites and the research and understanding that needs to be done. and not the horrow of the creatures business end

The book is an eye opener for people not so familiar with sharks, especially the great white. Xavier Maniguet was able to present the shark in its truest form: grace, beauty, and danger combined. The book makes you wonder how a creature, decidedly primitive by its existence for millions of years, can still survive and outlive most species of animals be it on land, in air or in water. More power and congratulations to the author and all the contributors of a very important piece of work well done. Katrina Azcona(kilo_alpha@hotmail.com)

I MUST HAVE READ THE JAWS OF DEATH MANY TIMES AND I STILL FIND SOME OF THE STORIES IN IT VERY FASCINATING. I AM WHAT CAN BE SAID AS A SHARK NUT. I THINK THEY ARE GREAT AND EVEN MORE SO SINCE I READ MR.MANIGUET'S BOOK, IT HAS LEFT ME WANTING TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THESE CREATURES. THE JAWS OF DEATH IS A MUST FOR ANYONE WHO WANTS TO KNOW MORE ABOUT SHARKS. ITS NOT JUST EVENTS THAT HAVE OCCURED THAT APPEAR IN THIS BOOK IT COVERS EVERYTHING FROM FEEDING TO DYING IT HAS EVERYTHING YOU WILL NEED TO GIVE YOU A NEW VIEW AND UNDERSTANDING OF THESE MAGNIFICENT CREATURES.

I read this book back when I was in middle school; granted a lot of the book is quite graphic. But I read it while in middle school and immediately found myself wanting to speak to the author about this book he wrote. You know a book is good when a middle schooler can argue that sharks aren't mindless killing machines. Authors should know something about the subject they are writing about. So; if you want a book of lies, and want sharks to look like the villain, then please do read this. But if you care anything for sharks; don't waste your time. As for the author; thanks for portraying them as mindless eating machines. Just remember WE are going into THEIR habitat any time we enter the ocean. WE need to show some RESPECT for the ocean and all the creatures in it; no matter how big or how tiny. It's not like sharks are so out to get us that they throw themselves onto boats, or climb out of the water just to terrorize us. If you want to know who the REAL villain is, it's humans. While sharks kill less than one idiot a year; we kill more than half a billion sharks a year.
So; if you want a book that romanticizes the finning industry, and all written on a man who probably watched Jaws too many times, read it. However if you love sharks (as I do), and you want to protect them... Then I suggest you find a book written by a real scientist and not a guy who dresses up in a white coat and calls himself one. But most of all; if you read this review.... PLEASE DO NOT CONSIDER READING THIS BOOK. Please don't waste your time on it.