Simon Rogerson reviews some of the best diving and marine publications of 2023
BOOKREVIEWS
Simon Rogerson reviews some of the best diving and marine publications of 2023
Legends Beneath the Waves : Scandinavia Volumes 1 and 2 by Rene B Andersen and Andrew Marriott
PUBLISHED BY : RBA Publishing , Denmark ISBN : 978-87-974244-0-7 ( Vol 1 ) ISBN : 978-87-974244-1-4 ( Vol 2 ) PRICE : € 85 per set from fotografit . eu
This glorious double hardback set completely lifts the lid on the incredible wreck diving in Scandinavian waters . For so long , the complexity and sheer quality of the marine heritage in the Scandi nations has been the preserve of the relatively few divers living there .
True , there have been occasional magazine articles and , of course , last year ’ s high quality art book , Ghost Ships of the Baltic . But nothing that systematically catalogues the key wrecks of all the Scandinavian nations . Each volume is presented as a chunky , high quality hardback in a practical A4 format ; the first covers 34 wrecks in Norway and Finland ; the second is devoted to 28 sites across Sweden and Denmark . This is a serious undertaking by authors Andersen and Marriott , both highly respected names in the deep wreck and photography worlds .
You don ’ t need to be an expert on Scandinavia to appreciate these books . They start with overviews of the countries and their respective regions , so you get a lot of context before you delve deeper into the wrecks . For each wreck , large , high quality underwater images site alongside historic archival images of the ship in its pomp . There is exhaustive text on the histories of the ships before the stories head underwater , then you get equal or slightly longer passages describing the dives in painstaking detail . That ’ s what these tomes are all about , really . The authors have sat down and decided to publish the most authoritative , complete statement on their chosen sites , and that ’ s exactly what they deliver .
All the same , it is made explicit from the outset that readers should not treat ‘ Legends ’ as a dive guide , nor as a definitive historical reference . Perhaps that disclaimer is a bit of a cop-out , because really the text has all the elements of a traditional wreck tour , albeit with a few instances of artistic licence in the descriptions of crew reactions to air attacks and being hit by torpedoes . To bring these stories to life , Marriott uses sources who had been in similar situations and transposes elements of their descriptions to his stories . He handles this with sensitivity , and it all serves the story-telling process .
That , ultimately , is what these books are all about – stories . Andersen and Marriott ’ s goal was to set modern-era legends down in the most accurate and gripping fashion , while providing helpful diving detail and first class photography . In that they have succeeded , and in doing so created a bounty of information for anyone interested in the history of this region . It rather begs the question , why has no-one attempted a project of similar scope for the shipwreck heritage of the United Kingdom ?
Many Things Under a Rock : The Mysteries of Octopuses by David Scheel
PUBLISHED BY : Hodder & Stoughton ISBN 978-1-529-39260-9 PRICE : £ 25
Two early octopus encounters gifted marine biologist David Scheel with an obsession that has endured through his career , resulting in this wonderfully engaging book . As any diver will appreciate , octopus are endlessly fascinating , deeply complex animals . Little wonder , then , that they inspire such dedication among the scientists who attempt to explain their world .
When Dr Scheel first began studying octopuses , he decided to find and capture specimens in Prince William Sound , Alaska , home to the formidable giant Pacific octopus . There were stories of such creatures drowning pet dogs in shallow water , or holding a commercial diver underwater for four hours ( his gas was surface-supplied , so time was on his side ). Despite the worrying myths , his in-water studies have revealed the intricate lives of these highly evolved cephalopods , recently characterised as the most ‘ alien ’ animals on the planet .
If you are interested in octopuses and think you know your stuff , think again . This book is a treasure trove of hard-won knowledge about these cryptic predators and their hidden lives . The author has plenty of stories of encounters in the field , but for me the real nourishment comes from his ability to describe the way an octopus experiences the world . So we get detailed sections of popular science on , for instance , their vision . While they don ’ t see the world in colour , octopuses can see the polarisation of light . Underwater light reflected off a polarising surface appears in sharp contrast to the unpolarised background light . Through its ability to discern and interpret polarized light , the octopus assembles a detailed picture of its environment , hazards and prey alike .
This is just one example of the level of insight Many Things offers . You will also learn about body pattern changes ; octopus dreams and the strange yearning for closeness in what seems to be a naturally solitary animal . The author even has a strange story of how territorial mediation between octopuses in the wild provided a model for President Kennedy ’ s stance during the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 . You ’ ll have to read it to believe it !
17