5 comments about Lonely Planet Diving & Snorkeling Bonaire.

1. We bought this book after our first trip to Bonaire and before our second, and it was an excellent guide with just the right amount of detail and some very helpful tips that we didn't already know. I highly recommend it.



2. With the wonderful photography and great overall general information on Bonaire, this book us a very useful pre-trip planner. It also makes a terrific pocket guide to take along to all the shore dive sites around the island. The site names and indexing agrees with the local site markings and the dive descriptions are right-on!
   
   A highly recommended take-along companion for your Bonaire trip.



3. This book does have good descriptions on the various dive sites (shore and boat) in Bonaire - we read the summary the book had before our 25 dives last trip. Only thing that is lacking is some good overall Bonaire info, like resturants, places to stay, and map.



4. This book comes in at a far away 2nd place to Susan Porter's "Bonaire Shore Diving Made Easy" "BSDME"



5. I HAVE BEEN USING THE BONAIRE SHORE DIVING MADE EASY book for several years. I found the overall dive descriptions (shore entries, conditions, etc) to be better in this book than in the diving & snorkeling Bonaire book.
   
   The diving & snorkeling Bonaire book also contains some misleading medical advice. For example - the Sea Urchin paragraph states that you should avoid contact with sea urchins (very true). It then states that you should treat by administering CPR until the pain subsides. Interesting advice!
   
   The photos are the best part of the book.

5 comments about Diving the World, 2nd: Full colour guide to diving (Footprint Diving the World: A Guide to the World's Coral Seas).

1. My wife Sue & I have been very lucky to dive some of the best diving locations in the world, all of which are featured in this excellent and very readable book. First of all the descriptions are spot on and you can tell that the text is taken from the experience of actually doing the dive or visiting the area, not just researching it (unlike so many guides). The book is not just a travel or dive guide, it's more like a wish list to the best diving in the world. If you are lucky enough to be able to do this sort of diving then I think owning this book is about as important as owning a mask.



2. This is an excellent guide for choosing a dive destination. My wife and I have had the good fortune to travel to a number of excellent dive locations in the past several years and this guide gets it right. Be forewarned, it makes no effort to be a comprehensive guide to the entire world (for that, try Dive by Monty Halls). But it does cover the most intriguing dive locations, so it is heavy on Asia and the South Pacific and light on the Caribbean and has no coverage of temperate destinations, such as California or British Columbia.
   
   It is more than a dive guide. It does cover the primary dive sites for each location, but the real value of this book is it's recommendations on accommodations and other activities. It is perfect for choosing a vacation destination and to get your planning started.



3. Wow! Fabulous book, fabulous info, fabulous photos, just simply fabulous!
   If you are a scuba diver, you need this book. It will inspire you to visit places you have seen only in travel magazines. This book is big and beefy, too. Not a typical travel book, this book gives pages and pages of good info and lush photos of ALL of the best diving destinations known.



4. Beautiful book with many places that look wonderful. However, if you are not wealthy, you probably cannot afford to stay at the five star places shown. Still, I found it enjoyable to read about these places and see the pictures. Includes a handy appendix that shows the best time of year to visit each country featured.



5. I don't know how long the specifics would be current, but even if some details change, it gives good info on how to research for your dive trip. I especially like the insight on air travel into or out of Europe. Admittedly, it does not cover every dive site there ever was, but it does a nice job hitting quite a few. I do not regret the purchase.

5 comments about The Certified Diver's Handbook: The Complete Guide to Your Own Underwater Adventures.

1. the idiots who put this book together placed a segment of 35 pages in upside down and backwards.... who lets that kind of mistake pass thru quality control. there was no info on my invoice like a number to call or a place to email to complain and return the book. This book was under the description as "NEW." Very upset with Amazon lately.



2. One of the most useful, informative publications I have ever seen on the subject of scuba diving. Coleman has packed a lot of extremely useful stuff into one place. This book is mandatory for all new divers and useful for divers of all experience levels.



3. After just receiving my open water certificate, the next step was to read this book! It helps you on your way to websites for checking equipment and covers what to expect with your next upcoming dive specialty. Do yourself a favor and put this reference in your library. Easy to read, hard to put down, written by someone with a love of what the book is about- Getting into the water!



4. This handbook is delightfully written by a diver who is both savvy and informative. It's an easy read. He give's helpful tips on equipment, tips on where, when, who.... great money-saving tips. Hope you enjoy it as much as we have! It's already helped us to make some good decisions on buying certain types of gear! worth every penny.



5. Good book. I read it and decided right away that diving was not for me.
   
   It saved me a lot of money

5 comments about Manual of Freediving: Underwater on a Single Breath.

1. A perfect guide for those who want to freedive with safety, and with complete knowledge of how his/her body and mind works under diving conditions. A "must have read" book for the experienced diver as well as for someone who hasnt put his head under water yet.



2. this is a perfect manual not only for freediving as an outdoor activity,but as a philosophy introducing a new way of thinking...
   it encludes several exercises...(elasticity of ribcage,diaphragma etc...)
   it encludes completed training programms (swimming,running)
   it worths its money...
   greetings from GREECE...



3. As a dive industry professional I feel obligated to say that this is the best book you can find on any type of diving, especially freediving. It covers History, Technique, Safety, Rescue, Dry-Land Training, Water Training, Weight Training, Physiology, Diet, Bio-Mechanics, everything you need to know to go from an occasional snorkeler to a serious professional freediver is in this book. I own two copies, one of which is wrapped in waterproof duct-tape so it can be left on the dock during training sessions in the water. If I ran the world, this book would be required reading for all boat captains, life guards, SCUBA instructors, and surfers. Excellent source of information and improvement. It will ad at least 20% to your personal best.



4. I discovered freediving few months ago and being a complete novice I was looking for some advice. I was skeptical about finding such manual but it turned out there is one. When it arrived and I opened it I got blown away. This is not a manual of freediving - this is every freediver's bible. This book describes not only techniques and training programs but touches every single aspect of freediving including uhman anatomy and biological functions as well as mental preparation needed for this sport. If you are serious about freediving you need to have this book.



5. A great book that every freediver new or experienced must have.
   It will teach you new things or make you reconsider those that you already know.
   It provides all the information you need to know and also has a lot of exercises, with very good pictures, of how to improve your apnea times and techniques.

5 comments about Snorkeling Guide to Marine Life: Florida Caribbean Bahamas.

1. With almost 300 crisp color photographs of the fish, sponges, corals, and other living things in the Caribbean, this is an invaluable guide for the snorkeler or scuba diver. The various wrasses, parrotfish, blennies, angelfish, surgeonfish, as well as groupers, jacks and porgies are illustrated and succinctly described. The names are as colorful as the fish! With this guide you'll know when you've seen a social feather duster, a slippery dick, a moon jelly.
   
   This is an 80-page guide, not exhaustive or complete, but for the vast majority of underwater explorers, it's just the thing. I've been using it for diving and snorkeling in the Florida Keys for over ten years.



2. Great book. Has most of what you will see in real life in and the pictures make IDing things easy. Very helpful!



3. I am impressed with the great color pictures of the different forms of undersea life and the detailed information on characteristics of each. It is a very informative book and lightweight too. Very happy I purchased this product.



4. Yes this is a very nice book for identifying marine life. This is from the series of wonderful books by Paul Humann and Ned DeLoach. They did the much more informative Reef Fish ID, Reef Creature ID, and Reef Coral ID. This Snorkeling Guide has many of the same great photos and is very useful if you are satisfied with simply knowing the name of the creature. What is missing are the more extensive notes from the fuller editions; those missing notes tell WHERE the creature is found (e.g., only in the Bahamas, on the Gulf side of Florida, etc.). Also missing is the Reaction to Divers section and the more informative introductions to groups (like Angel Fish, or Wrasses). So, although this is a nice book, it really is a much simplified book for identification. It does not function as a Field Guide (the information on individual creatures is very slight). If you want a comprehensive field guide, this is not the book.



5. After reading the other reviews about this book here on Amazon, I opted to purchase it to accompany me on a 3-week kayaking trip of the outer islands of Belize. I am more or less a novice at tropical snorkeling and at the beginning of the trip, I had no idea who I was sharing my underwater adventures with, but after consulting this book before and after every dive, by the end of the trip I could say "oh, there's a stoplight parrotfish in the intermediate stage" as if I'd known my whole life. Beautiful full-color photos helped greatly with identifying my finned friends and the corals and other creatures they live with. Brief explanations of each of the groups of critters were interesting and educational too. This is definitely not a fully-encompassing guide and probably not for folks who already know most of the plants and animals they are snorkeling with in the Caribbean, but for those who are starting off completely clueless, I *HIGHLY* recommend this book. Both I and my kayaking partner (who grew up in Panama and had been diving with these guys all his life, but never knew who they were!) thoroughly enjoyed learning from this book. I'm back here on Amazon now to purchase the more comprehensive books for our next Caribbean kayaking trip! :) Two thumbs up!

5 comments about Reef Fish Identification - Tropical Pacific.

1. I was living on the Sea of Cortez and bought this (before Humann came out with the Baja to Panama book). It would be a great guide in Hawaii, Fiji, Tahiti, etc. but it's just about useless in Baja.
   
   If you are looking for good fish books for Baja, my choices (out of the dozen or so I own) are:
   
   Reef Fish Identification: Baja to Panama -- If I had to pick just one, this would be it. It's really designed for identification and some of the others are better to learn about the fish once you've identified it. Tons of color photos.
   
   Sea of Cortez Marine Animals: A Guide to the Common Fishes and Invertebrates Baja California to Panama -- A good compromise between identification and learning about the fish. Covers most of the common fish, but not as many as the above. Uses color photos.
   
   Reef Fishes of the Sea of Cortez: The Rocky-Shore Fishes of the Gulf of -- Best book to learn about the fish, but not as strong on ID. Covers a lot of fish. Some color photos, other B&W photos, many drawings.
   
   Fishes of the Pacific Coast: Alaska to Peru, Including the Gulf of California and the Galapagos Islands -- Inexpensive, pocket-sized book, color drawings, short info on each fish. Best book for edibility information.



2. This book helped me to identify virtually every fish I have seen on several diving trips to five different Pacific Islands. This includes North and South Pacific, Western and Central Pacific.



3. This book helped me to identify virtually every fish I have seen on several diving trips to five different Pacific Islands. This includes North and South Pacific, Western and Central Pacific.



4. Best one we've seen during our numerous diving trips, even the rare fishes are in there with good picture.
   must have if you like to identify the fishes you see. small enough to carry on trips.



5. I have several reference books for marine reef fish but this one takes the biscuit!! It covers the most species with high quality photographs. A real must have!

5 comments about Snorkel Kauai: guide to the beaches and snorkeling of Hawaii (2nd Edition).

1. Snorkel Kaua'i has all of the great things we found in the Malinowskis' Snorkel Hawai'i, especially the snorkeling tips, site maps, and the very useful "Sites at a Glance" table. The table saved us a lot of time we put to better use by being in the water. The site descriptions and "how to" hints are written in a such a way that you feel sure the authors have experienced what they're describing. This book has something that the one on the Big Island doesn't -- the delightful color landscape and creature photos by Mel Malinowski and underwater shots by Jay Torborg. Besides being a valuable resource, it's a beautiful book.



2. If snorkeling is your thing, this book will provide a complete guide as to equipment recommendations, locations, getting to the right location, safety issues, as well as many beautiful photos which identify a number of fish available when you snorkel. I have these authors' book on Maui snorkeling which is quite good. This one is even better and more complete. A must buy for the avid Hawaiian snorkeler!



3. Item was as described and arrived quickly. Have not used it yet so cannot comment on the quality of the information.



4. I'm so excited to go to Kauai now, with my snorkel gear in tow. The book has all the information anyone could need if you're going to Kauai for the first time, or if you've been there many times.



5. Good guide for snorkeling in Kauai
   Helped us find places to go snorkeling. We visited several of the beaches. This book helped us make the best of our time in Kauai.

5 comments about Diver Down: Real-World SCUBA Accidents and How to Avoid Them.

1. This book should be read by all divers. Comparing to other books on diving accidents I read, it shows that accidents happen not to newbies only, but even instructors and divers with houndreds of logged dives can overestimate their qualifications or underestimate dive difficulties. While reading the book I noticed, with shame, that there are things I do, that puts me in potential jeopardy, that I should fix immediatelly. The book stories are fabularized and it makes it very easy to read (despite of its sad subject).



2. I would recommend this book to beginner divers. I would not recommend it to experienced divers, or someone (like myself) who's already read and learned about scuba diving. Having read Shadow Divers and Deep Descent previously, not much in this book was new to me, and the tales here are very basic, simple.



3. I think of myself as an experienced (> 400 dives), skilled, and mostly pretty careful scuba diver. This book made me seriously reevaluate my diving practices.
   It contains a number of accident descriptions with scenarios ranging from novice divers running out of air, divers taking unnecessary risks to poorly maintained equipment causing serious accidents. In some of the accidents, the protagonists survive with a serious scare and some hypothermia, in others they get seriously injured or pay with their lives. The book is written in a clear, sober and non-sensationalist style, but nevertheless the fact that the accidents are described with a focus on the individual human beings involved sent chills down my spine. It is psychologically so much more powerful to read "Jason tried to breathe from his regulator, but his tank was empty. He could not see his buddy." than to read the general advice to regularly monitor your air consumption and stay close to your dive partner.
   After each accident report, there is a section detailing the lessons learned from the mishap, and often a box adding information about a relevant topic (caves, wrecks, rebreathers, safety devices). The accidents range from absolutely reckless behavior (a teenager attempts a solo bounce dive to 125 ft while his friend distracts the instructor during a safety stop) to cases where seemingly well-prepared divers all of a sudden find themselves in trouble (in a strong current). I found it useful to ask myself after each chapter: Could this happen to me? If yes, what should I change in my diving procedures? When was the last time I checked my safety equipment? Am I sure that I am not pushing the limits in this or that respect?
   An extremely useful book, both for the actual diving knowledge it contains as well as a reminder how things can go wrong and how catastrophic that can be.



4. Ange's book is a series of short stories relating to diving accidents. It is an extremely readable series of short account that provides examples of the things which most often go wrong. The first couple of stories have happy endings, which may lull some into a false sense of security, but that comfort blanket is rudely stripped away for the rest of the book.
   
   Each story is no more than 3 or 4 pages, making the book easy to pick up and put down. Interposed between the stories are a number of other side bars that explain various things relevant to an adjacent story. That helps make the book much more readable, as it explains new concepts to less experienced divers, but allows others to skip across bits that they know and get back to the meat. Across the scope of the book the sidebars cover almost every aspect of equipment and training, and really do a good job of illustrating the purposes of most of the safety equipment and training in diving.
   
   Altogether a very well put together book with a great deal of diving wisdom available in readily digestible format.



5. One thing about diving accidents is that they can happen to anyone at anytime, no matter how much experience you have.
   
   You forget to do something one day, or worse, begin to think it is okay to ignore the rules a bit, then things can go awry quickly.
   
   This book has real life incidents that are worth reading over now and again as a refresher, even if you are experienced.

5 comments about Hawaii The Big Island Trailblazer: Where to hike, snorkel, surf, bike, drive.

1. As owners of a vacation rental on the Big Island, we often cater to guests who are adventurous, independent and looking for spectacular sites that are off the beaten path. This guide is well organized, concise and thoroughly explains all the main attractions and history, as well as those little jewels that most visitors would miss. There is something for everyone, from seasoned hikers, families with children, short walks, driving tours and more. Every vacation home should have one available for their guests or at least recommend this guide. After they read it and pick out what they want see, I can review the area with them and answer any questions they may have. It has made booking the cottage easier and assures that our guests are fully satisfied with the location and surrounding area. Another benefit is the 'free advice and opinion's section which warns visitors of some very important facts to keep our guests safe and well informed. One of the tips, I always follow is to 'dress up' my vehicle with seed leis from Hilo Hattie's! ha...free leis and great aloha shirts...but save the shirts for the Luau! Another tip from me...don't rent a RED car! Superstition you say? no... tourist is says! Purchasing this guide takes the stress out of planning your well earned vacation in paradise! "eh, no worries bra"



2. This book was not all that helpful The directions were confusing and caused frustration. The locals all have and use the "Hawaii; The Big Island Revealed"



3. Another Trailblazer guide we really enjoyed. Whoever named this place the BIG island sure got it right. And so did the authors of this book. It's clear they know their stuff, there are so many outings described inside.
   
   This guide is arranged geographically so that no matter where you are you have the details on what there is to do and pictures showing what it looks like. What surprised us the most is that the book wasn't just about hiking, snorkeling (the best) and biking (wish we had our mountain bikes along), but it is also a great book for driving around and covers the neat little towns.
   
   We bought this book at the last minute and are glad we did. If you are spending all the money it takes to get to Hawaii, it is a smart choice to pony up a few more bucks and drop it in your carry-on. We also like the big maps and the way the book is written -- lots of interesting details.
   
   We will have to go back to see it all. The volcano area was truly wonderous!!



4. At least the 2 weeks that we were there the snorkeling conditions were outstanding and this guide made finding the locations simple. I'm not sure what we would have done without it. The Trailblazer also introduced us to all the hiking trails. Getting to some of the secluded beaches required their telling us exactly where to turn off according to the highway mile markers. To see the long expanse of sand and blue water sans resort hotel was worth the bumpy road ride down.
   
   The trail down to Pololu Beach and up and over the next ridge was a challenge and thanks to their descriptions and directions we knew what we were getting into. The less traveled route to the Captain Cook monument is also included, one of the best because at the end you reach a snorkeling place with the best visibility, coral heads and abundance of colorful fish. Primo places like Kua Bay, Iki Crater and lava tubes, Hilo lagoon swimming, it's all inside with pictures. Hawaii Island will take another visit or two to see it all. We can unequivocally say our experience using this book was a complete lifesaver.



5. Our favorite guides are the Trailblazers for alot of reasons. The first one that comes to mind is the depth of information geared for independent travelers such as us. They rule when it comes to exact directions for out of the way places. The only paid tour we took was to the highest dormant volcano (we didn't rent an expensive four wheel drive vehicle). Other than that we were blissfully on our own all the time dipping in and out of roads that led to beautiful turquoise snorkeling waters.
   
   We ran out of time and didn't see all of the island since its land mass is awesome, but thanks to the book we cherry picked our way around from Kona to Hilo and to Waipio Valley. For easy access to the trails, this is it and they add a little culture and history to make it really interesting.
   
   Lastly is the layout, same style in both books we had which made for comfortable navigating. The maps precede each section and the outings are numbered accordingly. In a quiet way, it's all there, no hype, they've done the digging and for a good price have published a worth having travel companion.

5 comments about Fifty Places to Dive Before You Die: Diving Experts Share the World's Greatest Destinations.

1. This book is very informative and the pics are beautiful. I bought this for my husband who is very interested in scuba diving. He enjoys the book very much. The shipping was fast also.



2. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and read it cover to cover within 2 days. It's a fast read. Each dive site gets about a 2 and 1/2 page description (some destinations get slightly more) with a dive expert giving a brief vignette on some of the highlights they have encountered at the site. The sites range from novice-friendly to much more complicated (for example, the first site listed is in Antarctica... not exactly luxury warm weather diving!!), but there is enough here to entertain divers of all levels.
   
   If you are looking for an in depth analysis of a dive site, this probably isnt the right book for you. The descriptions are just too brief to use the book for that purpose. But if you're just looking for ideas... or if you have a particular large sea creature you are dying to sea (i.e. mola molas, humpbacks, various shark species), the book does a good job of pointing out places where you are more-likely to encounter them. It also hits on dive spots where the macro life is the highlight.
   
   In response to one other's reviewers comments about not having a Red Sea or a Cuba destination, that comment is inaccurate. The Red Sea destination mentioned is Sha'ab Rumi, a location off the coast of Sudan. The author recommends a live aboard boat for this trip. For Cuba, the author recommends Jardines de la Reina, though he cautions US citizens who travel there that they do so at their own risk.
   
   All in all, a fun book to read on a chilly winter day with a cup of coffee and a tired dog asleep at your feet (at least that's how I did it!).



3. I am enjoying reading about places I have been and places I want to dive. Great compilation of dive reviews from around the world.



4. I love this book. It has some wonderful details not normally found in dive books, such as suggested dive operators and little bits of information that you normally wouldn't know about unless you'd traveled to that spot previously. Great photography! Of the places I've been that are in the book, I found the information the book provided to be accurate as well. Nice coffee-table book. Everyone who visits picks it up and has to read a few pages.



5. my son seemed to like it- i am not a diver. he actually re-gited it to his dad (my ex), hoping his dad will take him to some of these places.