Customer Reviews

Smithsonian Ocean: Our Water, Our World

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is an amazing book: it covers a vast amount of time and space in beautifuly written, easy to understand prose - accompanied by magnificent and photos that support the text.

It seems like at any given time there are several larger format books about the ocean in circulation; none of them have come close to the extraordinary synthesis of beautiful, intelligent prose and eye-popping design that this book offers. I found I could read it straight through from its opening in Eden in the Depths, or dive in at The Long Migration or other selected places along the way, and in each case found myself drawn in immediately into Deborah Cramer's poetic text as it echoed off the elegant design, photographs, and maps. Definitely something I would recommend to friends and teachers everywhere.

I found this book enormously inspirational and informative. I enjoyed the pictures, but I loved Cramer's writing even more. She writes about science, hard science, in a beautiful readable way. This book is meticulously researched and yet easy to read -- an unusual combination. Everyone should own this book. It will motivate even the laziest reader to take action to protect the world's oceans. I am grateful to Cramer for writing such a distinctive and important book.

Although I live far from the sea, Cramer's book offered me an incredible opportunity to become acquainted with the world's oceans and our dependence on these waters. The author presents meticulously researched science through compelling, beautiful text and stunning photography. The unparalleled match of high quality science writing and spectacular images makes this book a rare treasure.

Smithsonian Oceans is a beautiful book in words as well as pictures. Cramer clearly explains the importance of the oceans from the beginning of life in the deep ocean to the many ways the oceans are critical to our life on land. The pictures draw you in and her words keep you there. It is a good book for all ages.

This book has everything, and things that are not even expected. This book is beyond complete, with every imaginable aspect about the ocean. It is full of great pictures, lots and lots of them, full of color, full of very interesting information. This book is a fantastic addition to our library!

Let's face it, the sheer gorgeousness of the pictures and layout are worth five stars alone. When this is allied with an excellent text, which is clear and crisp and not at all "dumbed down", the bargain that this book represents can no longer be denied. Thirdly, something not generally associated with the louder voices in the USA these days; social responsibility. An awareness that we are raping, plundering, polluting and destroying an environment that we have barely begun to understand. Those loud voices often espouse a God-given right to exploit the planet without fear of consequences, of pursuit of short-term gain at the expense of long-term survival of so many species, perhaps even our own. In this regard, the book's final paragraph cannot be bettered:

"We are a species blessed with language and awareness, knowledge and ingenuity, and an infinite capacity for imagination. May ours be a time when we reconceived our partnership with the sea and restored its life-giving waters to health and wholeness. May ours be a time when the sea's habitats and inhabitants, wherever they may be found true sanctuary...May ours be a time remembered when we embraced the sea as it embraces us"

Amen. James Smithson would be proud.

This was a purchase for a man whom it is very difficult to buy a gift he will like. With the beautiful picture and fascinating content it was a success.

I recently heard Deborah Cramer on American Public Media's "The Story" and was intrigued as I listened to her account of how she came to write this book. This book was an incredible reminder of the beauty in the world around us, undersea. The vast number of photos were incredible and one could easily buy the book just for the arresting imagery however there's a lot more to this book than the photos. Deborah Cramer is a wonderful writer and her descriptions of the interconnectedness of our worlds undersea and on land is remarkable and leaves you with an important reminder: By preserving the seas, we are preserving ourselves.

Beautiful reminder that mankind was put here as caretaker, not as owner. Continued rape of Earth's resources will sow the seeds of our own destruction sooner rather than later.