Review by Choice Review
This book by Harasewych (Smithsonian Institution) and Moretzsohn (Texas A&M, Corpus Christi) validates its billing with high-quality, natural-size images of its subjects. Mollusca is second only to Arthropoda in biodiversity among animal phyla, and all six Mollusca classes with external shells are represented. Selection criteria included size, form, color pattern, diversity, and aesthetics. Featured species range in size from the 1-millimeter microgastropod to the 1.4-meter giant clam. Each species gets a full, tastefully arranged page, with a life-size photo of the whole animal and a partial enlargement, if appropriate for the page size, or a reduced image and life-size enlargement. Although the larger figures are necessarily but disconcertingly truncated at page edges, they aid appreciation of intricate shell surface features, such as sculpture, that mollusks use to aid burrowing, deter predators, and buttress thin shell regions. Labels clearly identify the magnification or reduction of each illustration. Each page also includes a clear, accessible, and accurate descriptive account of the species and its lifestyle; briefer comments on related species; a tabulation of ecological highlights and family position; and a small world map indicating its geographic range. Summing Up: Recommended. All libraries. A. J. Kohn emeritus, University of Washington
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Booklist Review
Beachcombing for beautiful or unusual seashells remains a popular pastime. Identification of the many thousands of species of shell-producing mollusks can pose a challenge, however. Authored by a pair of subject specialists with an emphasis on larger and more familiar species, The Book of Shells provides an excellent introduction to the major classes of sea-living mollusks worldwide. Students and the lay enthusiast will find the 600 entries accessible and engaging. Representing a small portion of the known species of mollusks, the shells depicted here are generally the most familiar, although a few rare and newly discovered forms are included as well. Uniformly one page in length, each entry follows a standard format. A table lists the family, shell-size range, distribution, abundance, depth, habitat, feeding habit, and the presence or absence of an operculum. A color range map, genus and species and common name, a paragraph-long description of the species, a listing of related species, a color life-size illustration, and, for small shells, a larger, more detailed image complete the information. A taxonomic organization defines the five sections: chitons, bivalves, scaphopods, gastropods, and cephalopods. Species are arranged by physical size, from smallest to largest, within each family. Supplementary materials include essays on shell characteristics and shell collecting and a basic guide to identifying seashells. The 2,400 illustrations comprise nineteenth-century engravings as well as photographs. To capture detail, tiny shells were photographed using a scanning electron microscope. Appendixes include a glossary, the evolutionary classification of the Mollusca, an index of species by common name, and an index of species by scientific name. Distinguished by outstanding color visuals, The Book of Shells is highly recommended for libraries in need of an overview of seashells worldwide.--Cannon, Nancy Copyright 2010 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
Review by Booklist Review
