"Shark needs an adventure. The sea is no longer exciting. It's time to swim on the wild side! But where will Shark find the most excitement?" -- Page [4] of cover.
From the bestselling author of Jaws comes a firsthand guide to one of the most feared—and often misunderstood—animals: sharks! In direct and accessible prose, Peter Benchley sets the record straight about the many types of sharks (including the ones that pose a genuine threat to us), the behavior of sharks and other sea creatures we fear, the odds against an attack, and how to improve them even further. He also teaches us how to swim safely in the ocean by reading the tides and currents and respecting all the inhabitants. Here are the lessons Peter has learned, the mistakes he has made, the danger he has faced—and the spectacular sights he has seen in the world’s largest environment. The book includes 16 pages of black-and-white photographs.
Master storyteller Benchley ("Jaws") combines high adventure with down-to-earth advice in a book that is at once a thriller and a valuable book about being safe in, on, under, and around the shark infested ocean.
Funny, poignant, and deeply moving, The Line Tender is a story of nature's enduring mystery and a girl determined to find meaning and connection within it. Wherever the sharks led, Lucy Everhart's marine-biologist mother was sure to follow. In fact, she was on a boat far off the coast of Massachusetts, collecting shark data when she died suddenly. Lucy was seven. Since then Lucy and her father have kept their heads above water--thanks in large part to a few close friends and neighbors. But June of her twelfth summer brings more than the end of school and a heat wave to sleepy Rockport. On one steamy day, the tide brings a great white--and then another tragedy, cutting short a friendship everyone insists was "meaningful" but no one can tell Lucy what it all meant. To survive the fresh wave of grief, Lucy must grab the line that connects her depressed father, a stubborn fisherman, and a curious old widower to her mother's unfinished research on the Great White's return to Cape Cod. If Lucy can find a way to help this unlikely quartet follow the sharks her mother loved, she'll finally be able to look beyond what she's lost and toward what's left to be discovered. ★"Confidently voiced."—Kirkus Reviews, starred ★"Richly layered."—Publishers Weekly, starred ★"A hopeful path forward."—Booklist, starred ★"Life-affirming."—BCCB, starred ★"Big-hearted." —Bookpage, starred ★“Will appeal to just about everyone.” – SLC, starred ★"Exquisitely, beautifully real."—Shelf Awareness, starred
“A quintessential summer read.” —Marie Claire A warm and wonderfully vivid novel about taking second chances—in life and in the sea One summer day on the beach in Florida, two extraordinary things happen to Maeve Donnelly. First, she is kissed by Daniel, the boy of her dreams. Then, she is bitten by a blacktip shark. Eighteen years later, Maeve has thrown herself into her work as a world-traveling marine biologist discovering more about the minds of misunderstood sharks. But when Maeve returns home to the legendarily charming and eccentric Hotel of the Muses where she was raised by her grandmother, she finds more than just the blood orange sunsets and key lime pies she’s missed waiting for her. While Maeve has always been fearless in the water, on land she is indecisive. A chance meeting on the beach with a plucky, irresistible little girl who is just as fascinated by the ocean as Maeve was growing up leaves her at a crossroads: Should she re-kindle her romance with Daniel, the first love she left behind when she dove into her work? Or indulge in a new romance with her colleague, Nicholas, who turns up in her hometown to investigate an illegal shark-finning operation? Set against the intoxicating backdrop of palm trees, calypso bands, and perfect ocean views, The Shark Club is a story of the mysterious passions of one woman’s life: her first love and new love; the sea and sharks that inhabit it.
In Surviving the Shark, Jonathan Kathrein describes his incredible shark attack experience. The book covers all aspects of Kathrein’s survival, beginning with the eerie moments just before the attack, when something smashes into Kathrein’s hand as he paddles on his board, waiting for a wave off Stinson Beach in northern California. Realizing it is probably shark, and possibly a great white, Kathrein tries to paddle away, furiously trying to make it toward shore, where he sees some of his friends on the beach. But it is too late, as the great white returns, slams into him, then grabs his leg and pulls him underwater, thrashing him back and forth, trying to rip his leg off. How Kathrein is able to escape and make his way to shore, despite his horrific wounds, is nothing short of amazing. But that’s just the beginning, as he now faces months of physical and mental rehabilitation, all the while dealing with the constant media attention that the attack has generated. Gradually, with the help of his family and friends, Kathrein makes a recovery. Today, Kathrein gives lectures on shark conservation, as well as on such topics as avoiding shark attacks when you’re in the water. In this book, he not only writes of his ordeal, but also delves into shark behavior, and explains his desire to spread shark awareness. There is also an underlying theme of tremendous familial love and Kathrein’s extreme fervor for life.