The Book Log
Every month, Sterner Editorial Services looks over the
books, DVDs and videos on sport diving shelves with an
eye for who would enjoy them the most. Generally the
newest entries are reviewed, but now and then it's a
classic that has been reprinted. See earlier reviews by
genre in the Book Log Library.
PUBLISHERS
Have your books considered for a review on this page,
which is also published in Northeast Dive News and
Northwest Dive News magazines as well as other
venues. Simply click Contact Bob and send it to the
mailing address. Press releases about new books and
videos are welcome by e-mail, but the only honest way
to evaluate them is by physically reading or viewing
them.
READERS
Tell us about the books and videos you would like
reviewed: e-mail info@sternereditorial.com.
Every month, Sterner Editorial Services looks over the
books, DVDs and videos on sport diving shelves with an
eye for who would enjoy them the most. Generally the
newest entries are reviewed, but now and then it's a
classic that has been reprinted. See earlier reviews by
genre in the Book Log Library.
PUBLISHERS
Have your books considered for a review on this page,
which is also published in Northeast Dive News and
Northwest Dive News magazines as well as other
venues. Simply click Contact Bob and send it to the
mailing address. Press releases about new books and
videos are welcome by e-mail, but the only honest way
to evaluate them is by physically reading or viewing
them.
READERS
Tell us about the books and videos you would like
reviewed: e-mail info@sternereditorial.com.
Click To Enlarge
Tips from the pros (July 2008)
Even divers who do not aspire to quit the land-based day job
to join the ranks of diving professionals will learn a lot from
Best Publishing's Commercial Diver Training Manual. The
9.5- by 11-inch hardcover is spiral bound to lay open flat
while readers' hands are busy working. While its companion
book the "NOAA Diving Manual" covers physics and
physiology of diving, the Commercial Manual covers nuts and
bolts working underwater. Hopefully most of us won't want to
rig explosives underwater or recover evidence from crime
scenes. However, many of its 17 chapters have tips that can
help wreck and marina divers find and recover items or check
hulls and pilings for deterioration. Chapters on seamanship,
navigation and diesel engines may be helpful to boat owners.
Diving Emergencies covers contingencies we hope to never
face, and even the sections on report writing and underwater
photography may help aspiring writers to take notes for
stories. Each chapter is a standalone approach to the topic and
most end with a glossary and a quiz. Publisher Jim Joiner
tapped the expertise of top industry personnel to prepare this
5th edition with updates throughout. ISBN:
978-1-930536-44-9. www.bestpub.com.
Even divers who do not aspire to quit the land-based day job
to join the ranks of diving professionals will learn a lot from
Best Publishing's Commercial Diver Training Manual. The
9.5- by 11-inch hardcover is spiral bound to lay open flat
while readers' hands are busy working. While its companion
book the "NOAA Diving Manual" covers physics and
physiology of diving, the Commercial Manual covers nuts and
bolts working underwater. Hopefully most of us won't want to
rig explosives underwater or recover evidence from crime
scenes. However, many of its 17 chapters have tips that can
help wreck and marina divers find and recover items or check
hulls and pilings for deterioration. Chapters on seamanship,
navigation and diesel engines may be helpful to boat owners.
Diving Emergencies covers contingencies we hope to never
face, and even the sections on report writing and underwater
photography may help aspiring writers to take notes for
stories. Each chapter is a standalone approach to the topic and
most end with a glossary and a quiz. Publisher Jim Joiner
tapped the expertise of top industry personnel to prepare this
5th edition with updates throughout. ISBN:
978-1-930536-44-9. www.bestpub.com.
Highlights from 'The Very Depths' (July 2008)
For most divers, Peter Bennett, Ph.D., is synonymous with
Divers Alert Network, the diving research non-profit
organization and insurance provider that he founded and led
for decades. To The Very Depths, the memoir he penned for
Best Publishing, makes him much more than the talking head
and controversial figurehead as his days at DAN drew to a
close in 2003. It's tempting to skip ahead to his insider's view
of his ouster. However, don't overlook chapters on early days
that led to his entrepreneurial career path as diving technology
shifted to civilians from the military. They are filled with
surprises, starting with his parent's, when he popped into the
world after the birth of his equally unplanned identical twin
brother, John. Vivid recollections of bomb raids on his native
Portsmouth, England, and subsequent move to Bombay,
Indian, where the family sought safe haven, give insights into
civilian life during World War II and of the latter days of
British colonialism. Over 230 pages of anecdotes and
snapshots leave a reader feeling like he's met a warm,
energetic friend and family man who has loved his wife,
Margaret, for more than 50 years.
ISBN: 978-1-930536-47-0. www.bestpub.com.
For most divers, Peter Bennett, Ph.D., is synonymous with
Divers Alert Network, the diving research non-profit
organization and insurance provider that he founded and led
for decades. To The Very Depths, the memoir he penned for
Best Publishing, makes him much more than the talking head
and controversial figurehead as his days at DAN drew to a
close in 2003. It's tempting to skip ahead to his insider's view
of his ouster. However, don't overlook chapters on early days
that led to his entrepreneurial career path as diving technology
shifted to civilians from the military. They are filled with
surprises, starting with his parent's, when he popped into the
world after the birth of his equally unplanned identical twin
brother, John. Vivid recollections of bomb raids on his native
Portsmouth, England, and subsequent move to Bombay,
Indian, where the family sought safe haven, give insights into
civilian life during World War II and of the latter days of
British colonialism. Over 230 pages of anecdotes and
snapshots leave a reader feeling like he's met a warm,
energetic friend and family man who has loved his wife,
Margaret, for more than 50 years.
ISBN: 978-1-930536-47-0. www.bestpub.com.
'Trukin' to Palau (July 2008)
If you're dreaming of a trip to the Pacific Rim, Steve and
Kristine Barsky can help refine your fantasies with their new
DVD Diving the Far Pacific: A Taste of Chuuk (Truk) and
Palau from their Hammerhead label. Steve narrates the
34-minute segment on Chuuk and Kristine, the 20-minute one
on Palau. Chuuk is Japan's World War II equivalent of the
U.S. Pearl Harbor and the video visits all the popular wrecks
there. Data about each ship and the dive is presented in slides
before each ship, freeing Steve to just tell tales about the
sunken materiel they contain while Kristine glides easily over
artifacts that would have wreaked havoc on U.S. / Allied
forces had Japan's fleet not been sunk here. Drifting strains of
Japanese instrumental trio music accompanying the video add
a nice touch of cultural sensitivity for dives through what is
essentially a wartime graveyard. Counterbalancing that somber
note is seeing the vibrant waters of Palau. Currents for drift
diving draw a kaleidoscope of colorful sea life. Breaking up the
fish and plant portraits is a trip to the fabled Jellyfish Lake.
Throughout both segments are safety reminders to wear
thicker suits than many do in warm waters, and to watch
depths and bottom times. Good thing. Opening slides tell of
substantial depths and cooler water at them. Like the sites, this
is a video that won't be fully appreciated on just one trip
through it. ISBN: 978-0-9740923-5-5.
www.hammerheadpress.com.
If you're dreaming of a trip to the Pacific Rim, Steve and
Kristine Barsky can help refine your fantasies with their new
DVD Diving the Far Pacific: A Taste of Chuuk (Truk) and
Palau from their Hammerhead label. Steve narrates the
34-minute segment on Chuuk and Kristine, the 20-minute one
on Palau. Chuuk is Japan's World War II equivalent of the
U.S. Pearl Harbor and the video visits all the popular wrecks
there. Data about each ship and the dive is presented in slides
before each ship, freeing Steve to just tell tales about the
sunken materiel they contain while Kristine glides easily over
artifacts that would have wreaked havoc on U.S. / Allied
forces had Japan's fleet not been sunk here. Drifting strains of
Japanese instrumental trio music accompanying the video add
a nice touch of cultural sensitivity for dives through what is
essentially a wartime graveyard. Counterbalancing that somber
note is seeing the vibrant waters of Palau. Currents for drift
diving draw a kaleidoscope of colorful sea life. Breaking up the
fish and plant portraits is a trip to the fabled Jellyfish Lake.
Throughout both segments are safety reminders to wear
thicker suits than many do in warm waters, and to watch
depths and bottom times. Good thing. Opening slides tell of
substantial depths and cooler water at them. Like the sites, this
is a video that won't be fully appreciated on just one trip
through it. ISBN: 978-0-9740923-5-5.
www.hammerheadpress.com.
Claim a shipwreck book
Divers visit only a few of the 11 shipwrecks Adam Grohman
covers in Claimed By The Sea – Long Island Shipwrecks but
it's a book that would be enjoyed by wreck divers and
maritime history buffs alike. The 242-page soft cover from the
Underwater Historical Research Society focuses on the
grandeur of the ships in their day and the perils of the sea to
which they succumbed. Some wrecks disappeared without a
trace but for their compelling legacies. The SS Savannah, for
instance, first used steam power in a trans-Atlantic crossing
before splinting in the surf off Fire Island. The General
Slocum took more than 1,200 members of New York's
Lutheran community to their deaths in a fiery disaster.
Grohman tapped news accounts of the day and extensively
researched archives for details, and his sources are noted in
footnotes throughout the book. Besides wrecks, he offers tips
on getting more involved in maritime history and suggests
books for further reading. Several organizations and historians
are profiled in appendices, which also include a glossary of
terms, locations of known wreck sites, specifications of the
wrecks and a handy index that cross references the content.
www.uhrs.org.
Divers visit only a few of the 11 shipwrecks Adam Grohman
covers in Claimed By The Sea – Long Island Shipwrecks but
it's a book that would be enjoyed by wreck divers and
maritime history buffs alike. The 242-page soft cover from the
Underwater Historical Research Society focuses on the
grandeur of the ships in their day and the perils of the sea to
which they succumbed. Some wrecks disappeared without a
trace but for their compelling legacies. The SS Savannah, for
instance, first used steam power in a trans-Atlantic crossing
before splinting in the surf off Fire Island. The General
Slocum took more than 1,200 members of New York's
Lutheran community to their deaths in a fiery disaster.
Grohman tapped news accounts of the day and extensively
researched archives for details, and his sources are noted in
footnotes throughout the book. Besides wrecks, he offers tips
on getting more involved in maritime history and suggests
books for further reading. Several organizations and historians
are profiled in appendices, which also include a glossary of
terms, locations of known wreck sites, specifications of the
wrecks and a handy index that cross references the content.
www.uhrs.org.
CD new Navy Manual
Rebreather, technical and other serious divers will have a hard
time staying away from their computers once they've loaded in
the compact disk of the latest version of the Ú.S. Navy Diving
Manual from Best Publishing. The Navy hailed the 4th edition
of the manual, published in 2002, as the most extensive
revision since it was introduced in 1956. Of special interest is
a new air table based on the Thalmann algorithm. Besides air
diving and general diving policies, the manual includes volumes
on surface-supplied mixed-gas diving, closed- and semi-closed
rebreathers, diving medicine and recompression chamber
operations. Unlike the print version, all five volumes are
squeezed onto one CD. This makes it easier to research and
take up far less bookshelf space than the print version. The
data can be viewed in black and white or in color. The CDs
are said to be compatible with PC and Mac operating systems.
The Navy Manual is a good companion for the NOAA Manual
that Best published earlier this year. ISBN: 9781930536517
www.bestpub.com.
Rebreather, technical and other serious divers will have a hard
time staying away from their computers once they've loaded in
the compact disk of the latest version of the Ú.S. Navy Diving
Manual from Best Publishing. The Navy hailed the 4th edition
of the manual, published in 2002, as the most extensive
revision since it was introduced in 1956. Of special interest is
a new air table based on the Thalmann algorithm. Besides air
diving and general diving policies, the manual includes volumes
on surface-supplied mixed-gas diving, closed- and semi-closed
rebreathers, diving medicine and recompression chamber
operations. Unlike the print version, all five volumes are
squeezed onto one CD. This makes it easier to research and
take up far less bookshelf space than the print version. The
data can be viewed in black and white or in color. The CDs
are said to be compatible with PC and Mac operating systems.
The Navy Manual is a good companion for the NOAA Manual
that Best published earlier this year. ISBN: 9781930536517
www.bestpub.com.
A novel angle on diving
Great Lakes and travel divers may get a kick out of The Other
Side of Hell, a 306-page soft cover novel from Packard Island
Publishing. Ohio author Bob Adamov wove his local turf into a
fast-paced plot that takes readers to the Florida Keys and
Grand Cayman Island as well. What begins as a nice winter
vacation getaway for "Washington Post" reporter Emerson
Moore turns into anything but relaxing as he pursues leads on
everything from the fictional disappearance of Adolph Hitler's
pirate fleet to drug dealers to the Cuban missile crisis of the
1960s, with murders, love intrigue and general mayhem along
the way. Incorporating real-life resorts like Cayman's
DiveTech and Sunset House lends realism to the Clive
Cussler-style plot. Making it even more believable is a music
compact disk that accompanies the book with 11 songs by
Put-in-Bay, Ohio, singer Mike "Mad Dog" Adams, who also
plays a role in the plot.
ISBN: 0978618416. www.BobAdamov.com.
Great Lakes and travel divers may get a kick out of The Other
Side of Hell, a 306-page soft cover novel from Packard Island
Publishing. Ohio author Bob Adamov wove his local turf into a
fast-paced plot that takes readers to the Florida Keys and
Grand Cayman Island as well. What begins as a nice winter
vacation getaway for "Washington Post" reporter Emerson
Moore turns into anything but relaxing as he pursues leads on
everything from the fictional disappearance of Adolph Hitler's
pirate fleet to drug dealers to the Cuban missile crisis of the
1960s, with murders, love intrigue and general mayhem along
the way. Incorporating real-life resorts like Cayman's
DiveTech and Sunset House lends realism to the Clive
Cussler-style plot. Making it even more believable is a music
compact disk that accompanies the book with 11 songs by
Put-in-Bay, Ohio, singer Mike "Mad Dog" Adams, who also
plays a role in the plot.
ISBN: 0978618416. www.BobAdamov.com.
