Shadows in the Sea: The Sharks, Skates and Rays (Paperback)

~ (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Nothing puts quite the same tingling fear in swimmers, surfers, and divers--especially in the quarter century since Peter Benchley's novel Jaws conquered the bestseller charts--as the thought that a shark might be plying its course somewhere in the murky deep below. Thomas Allen plays on that fear in the opening pages of Shadows in the Sea with a strangely entertaining compendium of shark attacks on humans over the centuries. (The humans get their licks in, however, in the pages that follow, in which Allen recounts the exploits of William Young, an Ahab who chased sharks around the world.) Allen goes on to describe the ways in which scientists have attempted to understand the ways of sharks and their selachian kin, the skates and rays; looks at the place of the shark in the world's folklore and cuisine; and examines the commercial shark-fishing industry. His useful book closes with a species-by-species account of the world's principal shark types, from the 6-inch dogfish to the 20-foot great blue shark. Allen does a fine job of giving his readers an idea of the many ways these frightening but fragile denizens of the sea live their lives--and he provides plenty of anecdotes to disturb a beachgoer's dreams. --Gregory McNamee

From Library Journal

Allen is one of three people who prepared the first edition of Shadows in the Sea in 1963. That work is sometimes considered the "classic" work on sharks. It certainly led the way for other works that include a similar range of information, e.g., Rodney Steel's Sharks of the World (LJ 3/1/86), Facts on File's Sharks (LJ 10/1/87), or Richard Ellis's Book of Sharks (1976). Allen, a former writer for National Geographic, has done well in adding updated information, especially in the areas on shark attacks and uses of sharks; however, he has made far fewer updates to the section on the scientific families, except for the addition of Megachasmidae (Megamouth). He does include rays and skates, which are not covered in the other books, as well as shark legends. Fairly easy reading for the scope of coverage, this book is recommended for secondary schools as well as public and academic libraries. (Illustrations and index not seen.)-Jean E. Crampon, Univ. of California, Los Angeles
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: The Lyons Press; 1st edition (September 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1558215182
• ISBN-13: 978-1558215184
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,198,773 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The most accurate shark book on the market, January 20, 2000

By	sean timmins (Canada) - See all my reviews

Well, what can i say? i LOVE this book. From the first pages, an account of the "rogue shark" off New Jersey in 1916, this book is informative, exciting, and sometimes even endearing...stories of shark fisherman, attacks, and a comprehensive guide to sharks commonly found in North American oceans, i have never read a shark book that is so full of information...READ THIS BOOK!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Respect for Sharks and Man's History with them, September 29, 2004

By	D. W. Carper (United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

First published in 1963, Shadows in the Sea has been a popular book about sharks and their relatives, the skates and rays. Thomas Allen tells what he learned from two major contributors to the book. One was Captain William Young, known as "Captain Shark Killer," the other was Mack McCormick, whose shark research is now housed in American Museum of Natural History (New York, USA). According to the author, both men had a deep abiding respect for sharks.

Thomas Allen gives an evenhanded treatment of sharks in Shadows in the Sea. The author divides his subject into four parts: sharks against humans, humans against sharks, sharks as gods or food, and sharks and their relatives as fish. He opens with the famous story of the shark attack in New Jersey in 1916, which formed the basis of the popular Jaws movies. He believes that hunting sharks does not prevent shark attacks. The wrong sharks are usually killed, and the shark population is further depleted. According to Thomas Allen, sharks have a purpose in the ocean ecosystem.

In presenting human-shark history, the author explains the painting by John Singleton Copley, "Brook Watson and the Shark" (1778). The Lord Mayor of London Watson had lost his leg to a shark. Besides including a shark on his family crest, Watson also commissioned Copley to commemorate the event. However, the beast that Copley painted was not a real shark. He imagined the shark as a huge whale possessing a large jaw of sharp teeth. Most European people at that time had little concept of what sharks actually were like.

Thomas Allen recounts how the over-killing of sharks since the 1970s spurred people to save the sharks. In 1991, the Pelagic Shark Research Foundation campaigned against annual shark fishing "derbies" in California.

(Since the "derbies" involved shooting sharks with guns and harpoons, the author refers to them as "massacres".) By 1995, the Foundation was successful in stopping the organized "derbies".

In the last half of the book, the author presents the sharks themselves, and their natural history. He writes, "Whence the Shadows? Aeons before people appeared on earth, the shark was the monarch of the primordial seas. As prehistorical era after era passed---as amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals came forth-the shark remained. The dinosaurs-Brontosaurus, Allosaurus, Triceratops, and a thousand more-stalked the earth in ponderous supremacy and vanished into extinction. But the shark lives on. Millions upon millions of years before the first precursor of man appeared, the shark began a dynasty that has remained unbroken."

In clear language, the author explains shark naming (taxonomy) and shark anatomy. After reading this book, the reader will have a greater appreciation of sharks. Thomas Allen emphasizes that sharks are to be admired and cherished for what they do. Sharks deserve a chance to be saved from extinction.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars shadows in the sea, March 2, 2001

By	Lu Ann Willis "edwinw36" (Ellaville, Georgia USA) - See all my reviews

this is one of the most informative and fascinating books i have ever read. i have used it for giving speeches and for teaching. the illustrations are very interesting along with the other art works included. i must own close to a thousand books , but this is one of the very few which i read over and over.