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Deep Atlantic:
The Unimaginable World by Richard Ellis |
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a world with creatures who live on elements other than oxygen, or
spend their entire lives in darkness, under tons of pressure from
above. This world is only a few miles under the sea, but so inaccessible
it was left almost completely unexplored until after man had landed
on the moon. In Deep Atlantic, Richard Ellis gives the reader
a picture of what this deep-sea world looks like, along with the creatures
that dwell there. I found this book fascinating both for the historical
context detailing the beginning of undersea exploration (much of which
was comical) and for the descriptions of the organisms that made their
home in seemingly inhospitable environments. The descriptions of the organisms that live in the deep-sea environments made up the bulk of the book. The language of this book is definitely geared towards readers who have some knowledge in the area, and I would have found the endless description confusing and even tedious if Ellis had not included one aspect: pictures. There is a drawing right in the text to accompany almost every organism’s description, so I had a visual image to reference during the narrative. The pictures are beautiful, white pointalism and lines against a black background. Ellis explains this would give the reader an idea of how the creature would appear in the blackness of the deep ocean, where light scarcely penetrates. This thoughtful contradiction to the usual black-on-white sketches not only gave the drawings a higher level of visual appeal, but also a greater degree of realism. The reader could see where a shark or jellyfish was luminescent, and also how the shark and jellyfish are viewed by predator and prey. The beautiful drawings elevated Deep Atlantic from good to excellent, and completely eradicated the textbook feel that sometimes threatened to creep into the narrative. I think Deep Atlantic is a worthwhile read, not only for the drawings and the in depth look at life on the ocean floor, but also because of the different perspective it gave me. Most people are accustomed to think of organisms as oxygen breathing creatures living in the sun’s light. However, here is a whole world that is difficult to even imagine. After reading this book, I will definitely check out more literature on deep-sea exploration, whether on sunken ships or more on the underwater creatures. I would rate this book a 4 out of 5, and strongly support Deep Atlantic becoming a full Cornerstone. ~ Erika Z. of Cumberland, ME 2nd Place 11th Grade / Read, Write & Win 2007 |
Jocelyn Hubbell
jhubbell @ curtislibrary.com
(207) 725-5242 ext. 238
Cornerstones of Science
Last updated May 29, 2007