Underwater to Get Out of the Rain: Summary and book reviews of Underwater to Get Out of the Rain by Trevor Norton, plus links to an excerpt from Underwater to Get Out of the Rain and a biography of Trevor Norton.
Underwater to Get Out of the Rain A Love Affair With the Sea
by Trevor Norton
Hardcover: Jun 2006,
400 pages.
Paperback: Jun 2007,
400 pages.
On a hot summer's day there could be no quicker transport to the seaside than
Trevor Norton's cool and entrancing account of a lifetime's adventures under or
near the water. Norton's eye for the bizarre, amazing, and beautiful inhabitants
of the oceans, and the eccentric characters who work, study, and live by the
shore make his book a wonder-filled experience. An intrepid diver and
distinguished scientist, Norton's writing is self-deprecating, very funny, and
full of wry and intriguing anecdotes; he is an unfailingly delightful companion.
Whether his setting is a bed of jewel anemones in an Irish lough, a giant
California cavern shared with sea lions, a mildewed research station, or the
glittering coral gardens of Sharm el Sheikh, his captivating prose always finds
the mark. Sometimes following the shoreline with earlier beachcombers such as
Darwin, John Steinbeck, and George Orwell, Norton also takes the reader to
depths where the shapes of creatures living without sunlight defy imagination.
Admirers of the gorgeous detail of Rachel Carson's The Sea Around Us will
revel in Norton's writing, his observations, and irreverent wit.
Despite Norton's wit and encyclopedic knowledge, after a while the rambling takes on the feel of a "brain dump" .... The saving grace is Norton's deep and profound love of the sea which shines clearly on every page, which is enough to amply redeem Underwater To Get Out of The Rain from its arguable faults. (Reviewed by BookBrowse Review Team).
Biology Digest
[Norton’s] love for the sea is poetic throughout the text as he weaves delectable trivia, offbeat history, and the beauty of marine science together in a masterful creation...A very special book.
Booklist
[A} witty and engaging memoir.
Kirkus
A chattily erudite account of the author's personal pilgrimage.
Library Journal
In these lighthearted essays that are part memoir, part natural history, [Norton] conveys his profound love of nature and the ocean, injecting his dry sense of humor…Lovely line drawings…This book will be enjoyed by readers
Publishers Weekly
Starred review. This delightfully wry account of a lifetime enchanted by the sea should enshrine marine biologist Norton in the pantheon of sea-struck pioneers.
Lawrence Millman, author of Last Places
A delicious bouillabaisse of memoir, wit, and natural history! I would say more, but I can't tear myself away from this utterly beguiling book."
Trevor Norton is Professor of Marine Biology at the University of Liverpool.
He is the author of a number of popular
natural history books, including
Reflections on a Summer Sea and
Stars Beneath The Sea. His writing
has been described as "by turns funny
and gripping" by the Guardian and
a "racing current of excitement,
adventure and discovery" by New
Scientist.
The true story of long-distance swimmer Lynne Cox's ocean encounter with an 18-foot baby whale and her efforts to reunite "Grayson" with his mother - part mystery, part magical tale.
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(422 words).
Biology Digest
Lawrence Millman, author of Last Places
