The more crowded life gets the more I love to look at these beautiful pictures. Genuine grace at its best. It is one of my most favorite coffee table books. If you love the sea you must have this book.

This is absolutely a "MUST HAVE" book! The dust jacket alone is beautiful, but just wait until you see the artwork inside! "Breathtaking!" Wyland fans, you're really missing out if this book's not in your collection.

This is a wonderful book for anyone who loves dolphins, whales and other sea life. It has lots of beautiful artwork with thoughtful quotes beneath. There is also some interesting information on Wyland.

First, there is a section on whales, followed by one on dolphins, manatees and other sea life. Next, there are several collaboration pieces. Wyland worked with artists such as Jim Warren & James Coleman to create many stunning pieces.

I especially liked one with babies & dolphins he worked on with Janet Stewart. I also loved the section on the whaling wall murals. The walls are shown both in-progress & finished.

I found the information on each wall and about how the walls came to be fascinating. A detailed list on of all the walls & their specifications as well as a list of all the Wyland galleries are a nice bonuses.

My (10-year-old) daughter brought this book to me with a request: "This is what I want to buy all of my friends for their birthdays this year!" She loved the sense of adventure and risk-taking that Beth Baker describes in this approachable biography of an American heroine. Baker's wonderful writing is complemented by terrific underwater photos of Earle in action. Baker's book captures qualities in Earle that many kids--boys and girls alike--will find inspiring. A terrific read-alone for 4th-7th graders; also an engrossing read aloud text.

Kudos to Beth Baker for writing a book that is not only inspiring but informative and entertaining. Sylvia Earle, Guardian of the Sea, is a well written documentation of the life of a most interesting pioneer. Ms. Baker expertly captures the experiences of a woman, who plunged into the undersea world of exploration -- a field that has long been male dominated. Like Jacques Cousteau, Earle is curious about the wonders of the ocean, and undeterred about what her perceived role should be in the world, she successfully becomes a noted scientist, marine biologist and deep sea diver.

Her life is a shining example for all to strive and achieve their highest goals. It is of particular significance to young girls, who can read about Ms. Earle's pursuits and enter arenas that they might have thought were closed to them. Although the book is geared toward 9-14 year olds, it is an enjoyable read for all who have ever dreamed.

If you'd like your children to learn the rewards of perserving against great difficulties for what they believe in, the intrinsic value of the ocean and all living things, the adventure of Sylvia Earles life is an inspirational tale not to be missed. She was a true pioneer whose passionate quest for knowledge of the ocean and its inhabitants ran head on into societies reluctance for women to pursue professions beyond telecommunications and restuaranteurs(operators and waitresses). Author Beth Baker starts the book with Sylvia out of air, deep in the ocean, and keeps your attention throughout. This superbly crafted account, complete with color photos, is a delight for young readers.

This was a truly excellent read - if you are interested in how they make those impressive aquarium displays, how they catch the livestock, overcome the challenges of adapting them to aquarium life and lots of stories along the way, this is the book for you from the man widely acknowledged as being "it" when it comes to designing pioneering public aquaria.

Highly recommended for anyone out there fascinated by fish and the marvellous public aquariums around the world. Enjoy it!

David C. Powell provides the reader with an excellent insight into the life experiences of a dedicated biologist. His detailed descriptions and insights of all the efforts that went into sharing his exciting discoveries is a joy to read. For anyone who visits aquariums this is a must read book. It provides rare, behind the scenes, information about the enormous effort and dedication involved in providing public aquarium exhibits. Dave's style has the flavor of Ricketts and Stienbeck all in one.

If among the things you have to confess you know nothing about are designing, stocking, and running a public aquarium, you can change that and have a darned good time filling in these particular voids. David C. Powell, who knows more about running aquariums than just about anyone, has written a memoir, _A Fascination for Fish: Adventures of an Underwater Pioneer_ (University of California Press) that tells about his unusual career and has more than its share of pleasing anecdotes.

Powell took the first fish he caught as a kid and slept with it under his pillow. He maintained the lobster tank at a fancy Malibu restaurant. When he read Cousteau's first book, _The Silent World_, he knew he had to start diving. As he kept specimens in his home aquarium, he joined the Marine Aquarium Society of Los Angeles. A fellow member told him of a job opening as an aquarist at Marineland of the Pacific; it was just what he wanted to do, and from there he worked at various aquariums, directing the live exhibits at the Monterey Bay Aquarium until retiring four years ago. He now seems to be the most frequently consulted consultant whenever towns or nations want to set up aquariums.

Powell writes with admiration and affection about the creatures he has to capture and then keep in as home-like an environment as possible, including the wonderfully named sarcastic fringehead, the "thumbsplitter" mantis shrimp with its faster-than-the-eye claw, and many more. He tells about the process of capturing samples in many different ways, but diving and capturing fish is the easy part. Transporting them is hard. There are different gadgets and containers that have to be used, including the truck transport named the "Tunabago." It is planning the displays of the fish that obviously has given Powell the most satisfaction in his career. His description, for instance, of the responsibilities of putting up the largest window in the world, a gigantic acrylic pane fifty-five by fifteen feet, thirteen inches thick, and weighing thirty-eight tons, is completely engrossing.

Powell's book, a mixture of autobiography, oceanography, ichthyology, museology, and funny stories, is a delight. In seemingly effortless style, he conveys the excitement even in the minor aspects of his career. He gives a final essay on the importance of aquariums (disdained by Cousteau as "fish prisons") in bringing people closer to nature and in promoting the conservation that could keep the oceans healthy. His book is a worthy summary of a lifetime's effort in that cause.

This book is first and foremost a book of prayer and reflection, and an excellent one at that. But it also presents an intriguing glimpse into the historic development of spirituality among the Celtic peoples. Most of the saints depicted in the book were from Ireland or Wales, places whose history is famous not for conqueror generals or warrior kings, but for scholars and poets and saints. Here they are, with their spirituality rooted in time and place. Such context I think is important, for the essence of spirituality is a relationship between the mortal and the Divine. While offering a superb compilation of prayer and meditation, the authors also do a grand job of portraying that relationship within the Celtic culture.

Praying with the Celtic Saints is a wonderful introduction to Celtic Spirituality. It is an outstanding book for both those who desire to learn about Celtic Spirituality and for seekers who wish to have some lively companions on the journey. The Celtic Christian heritage is so rich and vibrant and has much to offer modern day travelers on the Journey.

We all need guides in the faith, those who have gone before us and can help us learn how to live with authenticity and true devotion. The Celtic saints come to life in this book and teach us what it means to be a Christian. This translates into witnessing a lived faith from not only the past, but one that can provide hope, joy, and inpiration for us today. These saints become dear friends and teachers in the pages of this book.

I am grateful for having come to know these men and women through this book - they make a difference in my life as a fellow pilgrim!

This book is amazing. It has the best underwater photos I've seen, and sends a very powerful message to take care of this planet we live on. Buy it, proceeds go to UNESCO's ocean charity.

Earle has done a wonderful job of introducing readers to the joy of exploring both the oceans and personal goals. Earle uses a conversational tone with stunning photos in this autobiographical tale. Both children (9-12 is the target age and as a read aloud for younger children) and their parents will find this to be an excellent gateway into the underwater world. Budding marine biologists will marvel as their dreams (like swimming with whales) are described. They will finish the book with their own dreams reinforced.

The splendid underwater photos in this book bring kids face to face with a variety of coral reef fish including comical clown fish, valiant damselfish and shy gobies. Even little kids love it. Our 17 month-old made me read it five times yesterday! For older kids, the simple but rich text gives a sense of each fish's personality. Highly recommended - Sylvia Earle and Wolcott Henry have masterfully crafted a book that educates while entertaining and engaging the imagination of readers of all ages.

THE definitive introduction to America's 'Parks Under the Sea'.

Beautifully illustrated with photographs from a virtual who's who of underwater/nature photography -- Wolcott Henry, David Doubilet, Frans Lanting, Gary Ellis, Stephen Frink, Norbert Wu ...

From the slow-moving Manatee in the caribbean waters off Florida to playful sea lions in the Channel Islands off the California coast, this book takes you on a whirlwind journey through what may be America's last and greatest wild places. Sylvia Earle's unique perspective as America's foremost underwater explorer makes her the ideal tour guide for this sweeping journey.

There's something here for everyone -- armchair travelers, experienced divers, nature lovers, adventurous spirits. The one book you really ought to own if you have an interest in exploring the vast wealth and staggering diversity of our national underwater heritage. More mysterious, more alluring, even more diverse than our National Park System, the National Marine Sanctuary System is the adventureland of tomorrow.

I thoroughly enjoyed every page and often find myself reaching to the bookshelf to "go back" to places that one day I hope I'll have a chance to visit. This book gets my highest recommendation.

This book is fun and educational at the same time. It shows the lives of different women ocean explorers. I loved this book especially, because I want to be just like those women. The ocean is probably my favorite thing in the whole world. I advise all to read this amazing book!

Much of this book is written in the first person, which in places makes it very appealing, but in other places is distracting. My other gripe is that she jumps around a bit in her life time - so one chapter she talks about being the only woman on an expedition, and then she is the 1990's leader of NOAA and then we are back to her childhood haunts and back again.

That being said, it is a good read, full of facts and history. She worked in the sciences back when women were uncommon in the field. Back when there was no scuba gear and Jacques Cousteau was in to spear fishing, not conservation. Interesting stories, indeed! So, if you want an account of oceanography, past and present, its extreme limits and cool equipment from a personal point of view, pick this one up.

This book was full of information and facts that I didnt know and found interesting as well as a list of Marine Sanctuaries etc. Sylvia Earle has paved the way for many I really found some of her passages to be inspiring. I will now think everytime I eat shrimp! I would suggest this book to anyone interested in Marine Biology or the Ocean and its conservation.

Sylvia really opened my eyes to the fragile nature of our environment and to the beauty and vastness of the oceans. I highly recommend this book for anyone with the slightest interest in our environment and nature. This book will make you interested in learning and doing more for the environment.