The Fragile Edge: Diving And Other Adventures In The South Pacific Download Free (EPUB, PDF)
In The Fragile Edge, the documentary filmmaker and deep-sea diver Julia Whitty paints a mesmerizing, scientifically rich portrait of teeming coral reefs and sea life in the South Pacific. She takes us literally beneath the surface of the usual travel narrative, in an underwater equivalent of an African big-game safari. Hammerhead sharks rule a cascading chain of extraordinary creatures, from eagle rays to reef sharks, as the sound of courting humpback whales reverberates through the deep. Inspiring for both armchair and expert divers, The Fragile Edge reveals how science can extend our understanding of unfathomable waters, opening our eyes to the threats facing coral reefs and explaining why these fragile oases are vital to human survival. In this passionate, spiritual narrative of her adventures in the big blue, Julia Whitty emerges as one of our finest writers on the mystery, beauty, and fragility of the undersea world.
Paperback: 304 pages
Publisher: Mariner Books; Reprint edition (June 13, 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 054705372X
ISBN-13: 978-0547053721
Product Dimensions: 5 x 0.7 x 8 inches
Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #1,972,556 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #45 in Books > Science & Math > Nature & Ecology > Ecosystems > Coral Reefs #179 in Books > Sports & Outdoors > Nature Travel > Adventure > Scuba Diving #514 in Books > Sports & Outdoors > Outdoor Recreation > Scuba
Most people think of coral reefs as part of the tropical paradise they seek when they jet off to "the islands" to get away from the cold of winter. Reefs are associated with palm trees and blue water and sun tans and romance. Biologists and oceanographers know that reefs are the most diverse communities on the planet, built into enormous structures by some of the smallest and most interesting animals on the planet. In many ways, coral reefs are the basis of life in the ocean.But in the South Pacific, reefs and the islands they surround and support are in deep trouble (no pun intended). Julia Whitty has been filming reefs for 15 years, so she knows them well, and she has seen their deterioration first hand. Now she has turned her considerable talents to writing a book, and if there's any justice, this book will do for coral what Rachel Carson's books did for the oceans and shores nearly half a century ago."The Fragile Edge: Diving and Other Adventures in the South Pacific" is a three-part work that unflinchingly examines the world of coral reefs from three perspectives, each set on a different island in French Polynesia. In part one, she describes the atoll of Rangiroa from the perspective of a diver. Writing about the underwater world is no easy task.Photographers and film-makers have always done a better job of describing the life aquatic. Perhaps that is because it is such a visual experience that most divers perceive it only from the right side of the brain, so it's easier to capture and present great images in lieu of thousands of words. Whitty has managed to capture the experience with words as powerful and colorful and well-composed as any photo or video clip she has ever made.But her descriptions are not just artful.
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