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A review by the_magpie_reader
Chasing Shadows: My Life Tracking the Great White Shark by Greg Skomal, Ret Talbot
2.0
"Chasing Shadows" by Gregory Skomal is not a book about sharks: it's a memoir, focusing 90% on the author's career and 10% on actual shark biology.
It might still have been a fascinating read - I have nothing against memoirs - if not for phrases like "From above, he is a slate grey--dark and brutishly broad, with a girth of some eight and a half feet." Seriously? Brutishly broad? How is that even possible?
Throughout the book, the author comes off more as the kind of schoolyard bully who gets his kicks ripping the wings off butterflies, rather than as a serious scientist who wants to understand a mysterious species. He describes multiple times his own disappointment when a single shark manages to escape being butchered by fishermen (who had been killing sharks by the dozens): "Unfortunately for the anglers (and for me), it broke free".
He quotes his mentor, Jack Casey, saying about sharks "They're vicious, they're aggressive, but they're also very vulnerable." Wow! Anthropomorphizing much? I can't believe a biologist would call any animal "vicious", and another biologist would choose such a quote to publish in his book.
"Chasing Shadows" might be a good read for you if you want to know more about Greg Skomal, but it's definitely not for you if you're a shark lover.
It might still have been a fascinating read - I have nothing against memoirs - if not for phrases like "From above, he is a slate grey--dark and brutishly broad, with a girth of some eight and a half feet." Seriously? Brutishly broad? How is that even possible?
Throughout the book, the author comes off more as the kind of schoolyard bully who gets his kicks ripping the wings off butterflies, rather than as a serious scientist who wants to understand a mysterious species. He describes multiple times his own disappointment when a single shark manages to escape being butchered by fishermen (who had been killing sharks by the dozens): "Unfortunately for the anglers (and for me), it broke free".
He quotes his mentor, Jack Casey, saying about sharks "They're vicious, they're aggressive, but they're also very vulnerable." Wow! Anthropomorphizing much? I can't believe a biologist would call any animal "vicious", and another biologist would choose such a quote to publish in his book.
"Chasing Shadows" might be a good read for you if you want to know more about Greg Skomal, but it's definitely not for you if you're a shark lover.