New Arrivals: The Dolphins of Shark Bay, Pamela S. Turner, Scott Tuason

Got a new batch of juvenile nonfiction in at the library, and the standout of the pile was this photo-essay about the dolphins that live off the coast of Australia and use sponges to hunt for a specific type of fish.

The Dolphins of Shark Bay
Pamela S. Turner, photographs by Scott Tuason
ISBN: 9780547716381
Read August 7, 2014

This is simply an excellent book.  The narrative follows a set of "sponging" dolphins off the coast of Australia, and broadens out into discussions of dolphin feeding, tourists, dolphin family and social dynamics, the concept of cultural or learned behaviors (in this case, possibly the sponging behaviors) and all sorts of other really interesting dolphin-related information.

Our main human character is Janet Mann and her crew of scientists and PhD students, studying the dolphins of the Shark Bay area.  Our main dolphin characters are a loose family arrangement of dolphins with peculiar names: Puck, Piccolo, Real Notch, Blip, Bytefluke, and Google among them.

The whole book is amazing, and anyone who is interested in intelligence and tool use and complex social behavior will find a lot to love here, but my absolute favorite thing is that the book takes interesting subject matters and breaks them down like a scientific problem, right there in the book, showing by example what the scientists are doing and studying, and how they are doing it so that their information is factual, relevant, quantifiable, and repeatable.  Truly excellent writing.

My final note is on the photographs - the author thanks the photographer in the credits, mentioning that he "clicked away nonstop" to capture the photographs used, and the dedication really shows.  These are excellent photographs, and truly enhance the appeal and impact of the writing and the subjects.

Excellent book all around.  

The Neptune Project, Polly Holyoke

The Neptune Project, Polly Holyoke.  ISBN: 9781423157564

Read August 14, 2013

YA: far-future undersea mutation utopia/dystopia

 

Nice debut, and a decent amount of plot despite an obvious set-up as the lead in a series.  I don't mind series titles, I just mind when the first book is unrelentingly and irritatingly set-up for the "real story" in later books.  If I want teasers, I'll watch movie trailers, thanks.

 

First off - the small niggling irritations: 

 

Terminology: "dollarns"?  "discns"?  "Birthing Days"?  It's very obviously post-American, along the West Coast.  LA is still LA, and everything else is named in modern terms.  I hate being forcibly ejected from a story because someone didn't do their linguistics and culture research and comes up with terms that just aren't plausible.  

 

Cliches: Then, there's the somewhat cliched "the child of the important scientists is the one who knows the least/knows nothing" set-up.  Ok fine, use it, but if so, demonstrate WHY you're using it!  Was Nere already under suspicion so you left her out because she was a weak link already?  Does Nere tend to blab about cool things or let important info slip in conversation without thinking?  Is she a worrier and it would make her psychologically upset to know for a long time?  Nope - just there because it was the plot idea.  I HATE that.

 

History:  Next, Nere is the name of the main character, and her mother is a secretive scientist studying dolphins and genetics, and the story revolves around Nere taking care of a group of younger/more vulnerable kids in the open ocean.  When I was younger, there was a fun show coming out of Australia called Ocean Girl, where the main character is Neri, and the mother figure is a scientist studying oceanography, and the storylines revolved around the kids on the habitat and their adventures with Neri.  Just thought that was a little funny - perhaps Ms Holyoke watched the same TV shows I did.

 

Love Triangles: I have to say I wasn't QUITE as unhappy with the love triangle (quadrangle?) in this one, because it was set up fairly well, and wasn't too intrusive.  I do wish it wasn't necessary, but at least if it's going to be there, I'm happier if it is less important to the plotline and action sequences.

 

Climax: A little unclear on the reasons for the climax, and that makes it ultimately seem a bit hollow.  If it were more clear-cut as to a sacrificial action or a failed escape attempt, I'd be a lot happier.  Not that it was bad the way it was, just wasn't as powerful as I think it could very easily have been with only minor alterations to the immediate action sequence. 

 

...and Reunions:  In addition, it was a bit of a cop-out to leave the whole reunion scene without any real emotional pay-off.  There should be some really complex emotions bubbling away there, and I don't quite like that we're leaving that relationship on an uncomplicated happy note.

Otherwise, I really liked this!

If the link above didn't provide enough of a clue, I love the ocean.  I love the idea of mutations allowing humans to live or work more easily undersea, and I like the concept of undersea habitats and colonies.  I have avoided all of the mermaidy books because they tend to be gushy romances, and YA romances make me want to stab my eyes out with a spork.  This was a welcome action-filled addition to the undersea adventure genre, up there with Kat Falls' Dark Life and Rip Tide. 

Nice opener, and I'm actually looking forward to this series continuing on.