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Published
by Allen and Unwin, Sydney, Australia, July 2000 (also available
in Europe).
Published by Joseph Henry Press (an imprint of the National
Academy Press), Washington, USA, Spring 2001.
Reefscape explores the nature and significance of
the Great Barrier Reef of Australia. Reefscape offers
an exhilarating tour of it, from both above and below the
glinting surface. Through the perceptions of other people
across time - Aborigines, pearlers, early naturalists and
filmmakers, today's reef scientists, greenies and resource
managers - Reefscape inspires delight, imagination
and spirit in all who yearn for the transcendence of turquoise
waters - and explores ways in which the sense of immersion
in delight might survive the inevitable return to everyday
life.
The book began life as a series of essays on science and
the Great Barrier Reef, but as I worked on it, I realised
that in the age of the brilliant nature documentary on TV,
more was needed. I thought about why is it that more than
a million and a half people each year visit the Great Barrier
Reef. What is it we are all seeking, what finding? The book
became more of a series of reflections on philosophy of travel
and the search after happiness. Reefscape is a word that catches
both the idea of underwater landscape and the meanings of
the underwater experience.
Lovely statement from an anonymous reviewer for Joseph Henry
Press:
"This book moves from a somewhat ordinary beginning
[Author's comment: No it's not!] to a fascinating
scope of reefs, peoples, places and times that gradually grip
and then compel the reader at the end of the book. It is a
thoughtful treatment, one that evokes a refreshing, almost
nostalgic feeling of old-fashioned, careful consideration
of all sides of very complex issues--when people like Darwin,
and other intellectuals, had time to think, ponder, to wonder
(yet the book is startlingly up to date on pertinent aspects
of the modern technological world). The careful examination
of issues in this book stands in direct, delightful contrast
to most treatment of issues that affect us today---where,
instead, we are pulled headlong into instant data-deluged,
decisions made on the fly in a knee-jerk information age."
 Buy
Reefscape online from Allen & Unwin (Australia)
 Buy
Reefscape online from National Academy Press (USA)
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