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256 reviews for:
Beneath the Surface: Killer Whales, Seaworld, and the Truth Beyond Blackfish
Howard Chua-Eoan, John Hargrove
4.22 AVERAGE
256 reviews for:
Beneath the Surface: Killer Whales, Seaworld, and the Truth Beyond Blackfish
Howard Chua-Eoan, John Hargrove
4.22 AVERAGE
I remember being captured by the magic of SeaWorld as a child. I even had the opportunity at the age of eight to swim with dolphins and dolphin trainers. While my love has always been for dolphins instead of whales, I can relate to the utter passion and desire to be a trainer. That was me, even though I was a girl living in NY.
With that being said, the biggest difference between me and John is twenty years. He was entering college and started training, I entered college and Blackfish debuted.
My glorified vision of SeaWorld collapsed while I was in my late teens. However, I remember the dream and the absolute crushing feeling I felt when I realized that SeaWorld really isn't so great and neither is any other place that keeps animals in captivity.
The book walks the line of personal and informative well. John shows the reality that is the situation: It is far from ideal for these animals, SeaWorld is a corporation focused on finances and images; not it's employees and animals. However, the animals cannot be simply released. SeaWorld has the means and places to maintain and provide for the animals for the rest of their lives, which is necessary at this point.
Much worth the read!
With that being said, the biggest difference between me and John is twenty years. He was entering college and started training, I entered college and Blackfish debuted.
My glorified vision of SeaWorld collapsed while I was in my late teens. However, I remember the dream and the absolute crushing feeling I felt when I realized that SeaWorld really isn't so great and neither is any other place that keeps animals in captivity.
The book walks the line of personal and informative well. John shows the reality that is the situation: It is far from ideal for these animals, SeaWorld is a corporation focused on finances and images; not it's employees and animals. However, the animals cannot be simply released. SeaWorld has the means and places to maintain and provide for the animals for the rest of their lives, which is necessary at this point.
Much worth the read!
Like pretty much everybody else with access to the internet, I was fascinated and disturbed by the 2013 documentary Blackfish. Featured in the film was John Hargrove, an ex-SeaWorld trainer who spoke out about the company's policies and the lives of both captive killer whales and trainers. Beneath the Surface is the full account of his personal and professional story.
Beneath, like many memoirs written by non-writers, is a little rough around the edges. There is a certain degree of repetition that becomes quickly noticeable - both in terms of content and certain turns of phrase. This is unfortunately a book that could have done with another pass or two through the hands of an editor.
Furthermore, I was listening to the audiobook version, which was read by Hargrove himself. In certain instances, listening to a book read by the author is an amazing experience...but there is a reason that most books are narrated by professional actors. While it was interesting to hear Hargrove's story in his own voice, much of the performance was stilted and/or halting. The director and audio editor missed numerous pronunciation errors - or, what I suspect was the more likely situation, simply could not afford to spend that much time catching the mistakes of someone who does not act for a living.
All that being said, I'm glad I got my hands on Beneath. Hargrove may not be a perfect writer, but he does have a thoughtful and interesting perspective on SeaWorld, the Blackfish phenomenon, and the whales themselves. Hargrove worked with SeaWorld's orcas for nearly two decades, and when given the time and space of a whole book, he dives deep into the psychology and behavior of these animals in a way that a 90 minute film cannot. Just as interesting, he also explores the psychology of the trainers themselves - why they do what they do, even given the enormous cultural backlash against Sea World in the past two years. In the hands of others, this might be a preachy or hypocritical approach, but Beneath the Surface is as much introspective as it is critical; Hargrove is as much interested in how he justified Sea World's policies to himself as he is in how other trainers tackle those difficult decisions.
Beneath, like many memoirs written by non-writers, is a little rough around the edges. There is a certain degree of repetition that becomes quickly noticeable - both in terms of content and certain turns of phrase. This is unfortunately a book that could have done with another pass or two through the hands of an editor.
Furthermore, I was listening to the audiobook version, which was read by Hargrove himself. In certain instances, listening to a book read by the author is an amazing experience...but there is a reason that most books are narrated by professional actors. While it was interesting to hear Hargrove's story in his own voice, much of the performance was stilted and/or halting. The director and audio editor missed numerous pronunciation errors - or, what I suspect was the more likely situation, simply could not afford to spend that much time catching the mistakes of someone who does not act for a living.
All that being said, I'm glad I got my hands on Beneath. Hargrove may not be a perfect writer, but he does have a thoughtful and interesting perspective on SeaWorld, the Blackfish phenomenon, and the whales themselves. Hargrove worked with SeaWorld's orcas for nearly two decades, and when given the time and space of a whole book, he dives deep into the psychology and behavior of these animals in a way that a 90 minute film cannot. Just as interesting, he also explores the psychology of the trainers themselves - why they do what they do, even given the enormous cultural backlash against Sea World in the past two years. In the hands of others, this might be a preachy or hypocritical approach, but Beneath the Surface is as much introspective as it is critical; Hargrove is as much interested in how he justified Sea World's policies to himself as he is in how other trainers tackle those difficult decisions.
This was a really interesting look at killer whales in captivity as told from the viewpoint of someone who genuinely and personally loves those whales. He doesn't seem to have a vendetta or an axe to grind so much as a true desire to advocate for these powerful yet voiceless beings.
The writing was not excellent, but it was a first-hand account of a very exclusive industry, and as such I'm much more interested in the content than the presentation, which was not terrible anyway. There was also a smidge of hubris evident whenever the trainer talked about his almost supernatural insight into the states of the whales under his care. He is careful to pay lip service to how unpredictable they are, but also seems to believe, maybe even on a subconscious level, that HE would never be caught quite so unawares--even when he's talking about incidents that came very close to killing or maiming him.
The writing was not excellent, but it was a first-hand account of a very exclusive industry, and as such I'm much more interested in the content than the presentation, which was not terrible anyway. There was also a smidge of hubris evident whenever the trainer talked about his almost supernatural insight into the states of the whales under his care. He is careful to pay lip service to how unpredictable they are, but also seems to believe, maybe even on a subconscious level, that HE would never be caught quite so unawares--even when he's talking about incidents that came very close to killing or maiming him.
Since I have seen the documentary "Blackfish" I wanted to know more about Orcas in captivity. I did a lot of online research so I already knew most of the facts that are listed in "Beneath The Surface".
It was still very interesting (and heartbreaking) to read Hargrove's account of the lives of killer whales in Sea World. He shows how he fell in love with these whales and how he believed that Sea World properly cared for their animals. His views change over the course of his career and he becomes more and more sceptical of Sea Worlds treatment of Orcas.
The book also goes into a little more detail when it comes to the deaths of Alexis Martinez and Dawn Brancheau. Hargrove himself has encountered aggressive behaviour from the whales.
I reccomend this book to anyone who wants to know more about the history of whales in captivity, what problems captivity causes and how trainers and animals are treaded by Sea World.
It was still very interesting (and heartbreaking) to read Hargrove's account of the lives of killer whales in Sea World. He shows how he fell in love with these whales and how he believed that Sea World properly cared for their animals. His views change over the course of his career and he becomes more and more sceptical of Sea Worlds treatment of Orcas.
The book also goes into a little more detail when it comes to the deaths of Alexis Martinez and Dawn Brancheau. Hargrove himself has encountered aggressive behaviour from the whales.
I reccomend this book to anyone who wants to know more about the history of whales in captivity, what problems captivity causes and how trainers and animals are treaded by Sea World.
As I listened to this book written by a former orca trainer at Sea World, the analogy that kept coming to mind was alien abduction. Humans have taken orcas out of their natural environment by force. They are made to live in cells with others of their species with whom they do not share a language. Several died before the exact requirements for keeping them were figured out. Humans control when they eat, when they play, and when they are bred. Humans separate them from their offspring even though we know orcas have complex matriarchal families.
This is a fitting analogy because eventually the author discusses it too. Seen in this light, it is impossible to justify the practice of using whales and dolphins for entertainment.
The author started as a true believer in Sea World. From the age of 6 he dedicated his life to becoming an orca trainer. He loved the whales. He believed that some of the whales cared for him too. But he came to realize that no matter how close the relationship between whale and trainer was, at the end of the day he was still their prison guard. It is only natural that an intelligent creature kept under these conditions will try to fight back.
The book opens with the detailed account of his attack by a whale. He is clear that the whale chose to let him live. His break with Sea World came after the 2009 and 2010 deaths of trainers. In each instance Sea World's public statements blamed the trainers for making mistakes. After studying the incidents it was clear to him that they did not and that Sea World was lying to hide the fact that this aggression was a result of psychological stress to the whales.
He discusses many types of aggression and health problems that result from captivity. One telling story concerns the baby whales. They swim nonstop for several months after birth. This is because in the wild orcas never stop moving. They have to learn to stop and float still in the tiny Sea World pools.
Since the animals are not able to released, he discusses options for how to care for the current whales in a more humane way.This review was originally posted on Based On A True Story
This is a fitting analogy because eventually the author discusses it too. Seen in this light, it is impossible to justify the practice of using whales and dolphins for entertainment.
The author started as a true believer in Sea World. From the age of 6 he dedicated his life to becoming an orca trainer. He loved the whales. He believed that some of the whales cared for him too. But he came to realize that no matter how close the relationship between whale and trainer was, at the end of the day he was still their prison guard. It is only natural that an intelligent creature kept under these conditions will try to fight back.
The book opens with the detailed account of his attack by a whale. He is clear that the whale chose to let him live. His break with Sea World came after the 2009 and 2010 deaths of trainers. In each instance Sea World's public statements blamed the trainers for making mistakes. After studying the incidents it was clear to him that they did not and that Sea World was lying to hide the fact that this aggression was a result of psychological stress to the whales.
He discusses many types of aggression and health problems that result from captivity. One telling story concerns the baby whales. They swim nonstop for several months after birth. This is because in the wild orcas never stop moving. They have to learn to stop and float still in the tiny Sea World pools.
Since the animals are not able to released, he discusses options for how to care for the current whales in a more humane way.This review was originally posted on Based On A True Story
An excellent, balanced look at SeaWorld and orcas in captivity