1 comments about The World of Koi (Mini Encyclopedia Series for Aquarium Hobbyists).

1. This is a good, somewhat comprehensive book with nice pictures. However, don't buy it if you already have Koi: Living Jewels of the Orient. A lot of the text is the same, word for word, as are a lot of the pictures.

5 comments about Aquarium Fishes of the World.

1. This book is very comprehensive. It covers over 870 species of fishes. The fishes are arranged in alphabetical order of their scientific names. In my opinion, this is not a very way to present the fishes. There is no organization at all. Who can memorize the scientific names? I would rather see all the tetras in one section, and all the cichlids in another. If you want a book mainly for fish identification, the mini-atlas or the full atlas may be better choices. Some of the photos are in poor quality. If you are a beginner, many other books may be more suitable.



2. but perhaps I was hoping for too much. A paragraph on each of a thousand fish, plus a hundred pages on plants and another hundred on tank setup/upkeep was not was I was expecting. That is what you'll get here, however.
   I was looking for a little more on each fish, it's compatibility with others and some idea of it's behaviour in the tank.
   Oh well.



3. I thought this was a good book, but not great by any means, and certainly a lot of money for what you get. If this is the Bible of Aquarium species, there is a gap in this particular market.
   
   The section on fish species is comprehensive in its coverage, but not in the detail on each fish, ie: behaviour, territories and compatibilities. The layout is not easy to view at a glance, and annoyingly the photos are not next to the text, although usually somewhere on the same page.
   
   The photos are often poorly executed and in many cases just plain 'honest'. None of the clever lighting highlighting potential colours in fish, just the dull colour of each fish you'd expect with no aquarium lighting or in their infancy. Usually only one photo per species, rather than showing differences in sexes and ages. This is not necessarily a bad thing, as hobbyists may be disappointed with fish selections from other 'glossier' books.
   
   The plant section is just plain hard to read. You have to read it end to end, rather than use it as a quick reference. There is no cross-reference with common plant names. It is not even vaguely comprehensive of this gigantum subject - just a curtesy really. Again the photos, whilst pretty, do not always show the most characteristic features of each species.
   
   My final complaint is the spelling mistakes throughout the book. Although, they don't usually preclude understanding of the sentence.
   
   Once again, this is a good book - definitely worth borrowing from a library, but not worth spending your hard-earned money on.



4. -This is one of the best aquarium books i have seen for this price. It is well worth spending a few dollars for it. The book has everything you need to set up and maintain an aquarium as well as over 700 pages of different species of fish.
   
   -Each page has a picture of a fish or two, then underneath the photo is information about the fish(name, size, temperature, compatibility, diet, etc...)and a couple of paragraphs explaining the fish.
   
   -Then in the rest of the book is sections about taking care of an aquarium(tank set up, feeding, breeding different species of fish, health concerns/diseases, and a index of fish.)as well as about 100 pages on plants and how to take care of them.
   
   -My suggestion is that if you are looking to buy a book that has information about lots of fish for a cheap price then buy this book because you are getting a lot for your money considering its over 1000 pages. But if you want a book about maintaining an aquarium then you should buy one that is focased on that more.I recomend this book over dr.axelrods mini atlas because that book is just photos and dosnt have a lot of info and isnt very helpful. but if you are willing to spend the money then i suggest encyclopedia of exotic tropical fish because it is much more indepth and is very well put togeather.So dont wait another minute and buy this book.



5. A true classic reference book from one of the real masters in the field. Personally I find the small print a bit difficult to read but the amount of information packed into the pages is amazing. Would have been good if there were more details on aquarium set up.

5 comments about Caring For Betta Fish.

1. I read the author's Website on this book and was convinced that it would be the next best thing to having a betta specialist in the family. Not so much. It's okay ... I'm a beginner enthusiast and am therefore hungry for knowledge, but this book didn't dive deep enough for me. That said, it is easy to read (I read the whole thing in one night), but I was left with unanswered questions (on topics like tank cleaning and tankmates). When I got to the end to find an ENTIRE CHAPTER dedicated to GRIEVING THE LOSS OF YOUR FISH ... please ... are you kidding me? Tell me about my fish ... don't pretend to be an expert on human emotions now, too.
   
   In summary, it was good as a first-book purchase about bettas. It did not supplement my previous reading and I felt I'd wasted my money.



2. I liked this book quite a lot. I've had my betta for 6 months now and is doing really well. There are a lot of tips in this book to help take care of a betta. I would have liked a better understanding of how to treat the diseases that bettas get and greater understanding of how to identify them.
   
   I recommend the book. I like that it was consolidated into one location. This book was far better than anything I found in my pet store.



3. I have to say I was very disappointed in this book. I read it in less than an hour and got absolutely no new information than what I have already read on-line during my own research. And I would not call it "extensive research" either. I've only owned a betta for a couple of weeks. My first betta died in a matter of days (probably bought him with an illness) so this prompted me to research how to better care for my next betta. I researched on-line, bought a book about aquariums in general, and bought this book. My general aquarium book has been much more useful to me in how to set up and maintain an aquarium for my betta. (The Simple Guide to Fresh Water Aquariums)
   
   As far as the problem/solution section of the book? Very specific problem descriptions with very, very general solutions. Especially, one solution to check the oxygen level in the water. Just exactly how is one to do that? Is there a kit? Test strip? What? No indication whatsoever on how to do some of these tests.
   
   Aged water? Why? No other resource I have seen speaks of the necessity of aging water. This sound very, very impractical and unnecessary if you are trying to maintain a 10 gallon tank. It would be helpful if he can list the benefits of this practice vs. simply treating your tap water and using it immediately.
   
   It was also very, very simply written, terrible use of grammar, and sounded more like a school paper, rather than an expertly written, researched, edited book. Save your money and spend a couple of minutes researching whatever specific questions you have regarding bettas. It is out there in abundance.



4. I bought this book as a gift for my girlfriend, and she absolutely loved it. We both have betta fish, and we've both looked over the book. It is clearly written, and contains just about all you need to know about betta's.



5. Other than the fact that this very thin "manual" is incredibly expensive, the material covered, the manner of presentation, the depth of the material et al is impressive. Marcus Song has done a wonderful job in assisting you in the setting up and care of Bettas. He has a superb section on problems and solutions and some nice web links to followup on.
   
   I am sure that with enough searching and digging and less money, you could find all of the information in this book, but why when Marcus Song has done it all for you.

5 comments about The Discus: An Owner's Guide toa Happy Healthy Fish (Happy Healthy Pet).

1. I bought this book thinking I will get more knowledge about Discus keeping .But after going through the book I changed my opinion and think buying this book was absolute waste of money and time. Information given in the book is too general for any aquarium fish and not for Discus fish in particular. Not worth spending you precious money and time.



2. This is a great book if you know next to nothing about discus. It gives you all the specs you may need to know to keep healthy beautiful discus and even the basics on breeding with some nice pictures. It also repeats alot of information for reference purposes. However, if you need a detailed discription of the care of discus you will be diapointed with this one. I recomend you purchase it with another more detailed book that may overlook the more simple aspects of discus care.



3. This book is, as it implies for the beginning discus keeper. I will go as far as to say that this book isn't only for beginning discus keepers, but for stark new aquarium keepers of any fish. There are only a few chapters that are related directly to discus fish, and of these most of the information is VERY general insomuch that it only relates to GENERAL fishkeeping. If you are NEW to the hobby I would recommend this book, but if you are experianced at all find another, more in depth study of the discus:)



4. I saw this book when i went to the internet to do research on some information about keeping discus.At that time i was planning to own one but have no experience with discus and know very little about tropical fish which i thought only need air supply to survive.Many people on the net said this book was good and is very useful when it comes to problems with the discus so i went to buy it.I learnt many new things about it like heaters,different filtrations,UV lights,tank water like pH,ammonia,hardness and nitrites and nitrates.It was really useful even in the diseases section where they tell us how to deal with sickness of the fish.But overall it was really not that good as it did not go into detail about chillers and heaters and also some websites it listed at the back of the book have already closed.
   These are some bad points so i only gave 3 stars but it is really worth buying for a beginner.



5. This book is a complete waste of money. I'd give it a negative number of stars if I could. What's so bad about it then? It is simply a beginners guide to aquarium keeping (and not a very good one at that) with a few mentions of discus thrown in to make it sound as if it is a discus book.

   The photographs are OK as far as photography goes, but most of the fish pictured are poor specimens including the malformed discus pictured on the cover. Many of the photos are re-used in different parts of the book, occasionally in reverse as if there was an attempt to disguise the fact that the pictures were being re-used. The captions have nothing to do with the photos. There is a picture of a fish with holes in it's head and another of a fish with early stages of fin rot, but neither of these pictures are used in the section on diseases and the captions do not point out these defects. There is no identification of the strains being pictured and virtually no photos of wild specimens to help in identifying the 2 species and 5 subspecies that are briefly described in the text.

   There is a section on the history of the discus, but important names such as Jack Wattley, Carrol Friswold, and Gene Wolfsheimer are conspicuous by their absence.

   A lot of the information is redundant and contradictory. For example on page 39 we find "One way to estimate which size heater your aquarium will need is to allow 5 watts per gallon. For example, a 55-gallon aquarium would need a heater that is at least 275 watts". Meanwhile, on page 54 we read "A heater should supply 2 watts per gallon. So, a 55-gallon aquarium would need at least a 110-watt heater". Now which do think the authors would have you use? Of course they also don't mention that nobody actually manufactures heaters of those wattages (they can readily be found in 25, 50, 75, 100, 125, 150, 200, 250 and 300 watts).

   On the whole, this is one of those books that seems to regurgitate a bunch of stuff that has become "standard knowledge" in the aquarium hobby, without really knowing why these things have become so (or the science behind it). On page 80 in a side box on bare tank set-ups, we are admonished that these are "less cozy for your fish", whatever that is supposed to mean. I doubt that "coziness" is anything we can measure or the fish can give us feedback on in the same way that they behave if their water is too warm.

   On page 47 there is an extremely poor and misleading diagram of the nitrogen cyle. It implies that the major source of ammonia in the aquarium is the fungal and bacterial decomposition of fish "wastes" (feces?). The major source of ammonia is: it is directly exhaled into the water from fishes gills. There is also no mention of the relationship of pH to ammonia ionization, which is critical to be aware of in the low pH of a discus tank, particularly with regards to water changes and the usually accompanying rise in pH.

   There are a lot of other points I could raise, but time constraints prevent me. In summary, this book is a complete waste of money. Just about any book would be better, but if price is a concern the T. Giovanetti book is far better in this price range. I haven't seen M. Sweeney's discus book, but I have seen other things she has written and although I don't really care for her, even her book has got to be better than this one. Even better, spend a little extra and get something by B. Degen, J. Wattley, or J. Quarles. With the price of discus being what it is, if you can afford to keep them, you can afford one of the better books.

4 comments about Brackish-Water Fishes: An Aquarist's Guide to Identification, Care & Husbandry.

1. This is a very good book. Very informative good pictures may need a few more on the less seen species. Overall Great book



2. Well written and organized book, great graphics, and loads of information.
   Very thorough in listing all the types of brackish fish and their requirements. Worth getting if you are setting up such a tank. Makes the task less challenging.



3. Compared to the Aqualog Brackish fish book which focused a lot on brackish water habitats and chemistry this book focused mostly on various brackish water fish. This book will tell you where the fish are from, what type of water conditions they need, and behavior of the species or the whole genus.
   
   So why buy this? As I said it focuses on different types of brackish water fish (and their salinity requirements) listing a lot more species than any other book I have read. This is why this book is a must have for the brackish water enthusiast who wants to know of species beyond the usual stock most books cover or list as brackish.
   
   I give the book 4 stars because I think there could have been more on brackish habitats and on the plants found in them. THis book does tend to focus on what you are mostly like to find in a petshop but I wish it had told of plants and substrates not found easily but could be found for the persistent hobbyist like myself.



4. Knowledgeably compiled and deftly edited by zoologist and aquarium fish expert Neale Monks "Brackish-Water Fishes: An Aquarist's Guide To Identification, Care & Husbandry" is a complete, 384-page, authoritative and 'user friendly' guide to rare, common, and easy-to-obtain species of brackish-water fish species which would prove ideal for the home aquarium. In addition to full color photographically illustrated descriptions of each fish, "Brackish-Water Fishes also features sound recommendations for themed aquarium tank setups, and tankmates for each identified species. Very highly recommended and an indispensable reference, "Brackish-Water Fishes" is a specialized and core addition to any personal, professional, academic, and community library Pets/Wildlife collection in general, and aquarium fish reference shelf in particular.

4 comments about Clownfish and Sea Anemones (Barron's Complete Pet Owner's Manuals).

1. Having worked in pet stores for many years, I have dealt with lots of books. By far, my favorite are the Barron line of books. These books are not only informative, but are individual in themselves. Whereas with other books, they give you an overview of the animals at the beginning, Barron books give you the authors own experiences and learnings. "Clownfish and Sea Anemones" is a great book for the new marine aquarist who is first starting out, as these little fish and their symbiosis with anemones are usually their first introduction to saltwater aquariums. From setting up the tank, info on different variations in species, and disease info, this book is a wonderful intro to these amazing little fish and their lifemates, the anemones. For more information, read more books from John Tullock. This author will truly open the doors of this hobby to the knowledge starved aquarist.



2. Don't buy this book if you want to learn to care for your clownfish, or sea anemones. It is only marginally good at identification, and is sparse on content about selection, care, feeding, etc. The pictures/illustrations are pathetic, and it also has a bunch of "unnecessary" information about how to care for a marine aquarium. I didn't buy the book to learn how to take care of an aquarium. I bought the book to learn how to take care of clownfish and anemones. This book looks like a book that was published in 1973 and has been sitting on the shelf of your public library since then.



3. Generally, this is a book about introducing a novice to clownfishes. It provides a reasonable introduction to keeping and breeding clownfish, but the coverage of anemones is minimal (it is after all less than $10.00). In some cases, though, it oversimplifies their care (doesn't say anything about how to feed an anemone for example). If I bought this book, I definitely wouldn't think I had enough knowledge to purchase and keep an anemone. However, as far as keeping clown fish (which are quite hardy to begin with), its a good intro for the beginner.



4. The author of one of the best aquarium books (Natural Reef Aquariums) writes about everyone's favorite fish. What could possibly be better? Actually, the book is very limited in scope, and clearly produced down to a price. Brief sections classify anemonefish and the anemones, describe how to set up and maintain a tank, how to feed clownfish, which species to keep with clownfish, and some tips on breeding clownfish.
   
   Classification of both the anenomes and clownfish is covered better in the book 'Anemone Fishes and Their Host Sea Anemones'. The Care and Breeding of Clownfishes is covered better by Joyce Wilkerson in her book 'Clownfishes'. And the setup and maintenance of a tank is covered better by just about every acquarium book out there.
   
   That said, within the limits of the space and format of the book, the coverage is as good as could be expected. The book brings together sufficient information to get beginners started. The book will tell you How to, but not Why. If this is all you want to know (and if you local acquarium shop is good), then this book is probably all you need.

1 comments about The Modern Reef Aquarium.

1. This is a fantastic book that gives a low-tech approach to creating a reef aquarium that includes set-up information, how to choose an appropriate species mix, and how to maintain the tank. It also has really gorgeous photography. Although it isn't long, it's very inclusive.

   I am a freshwater hobbyist who is thinking about setting up a small reef tank. Published in 1994, about the only thing this book does not cover is up-to-date protein skimmers. However, it gives a great description of how to build your own skimmer, which back in 1993 when it was written was probably the best way to get one!

   I am very impressed with this book. I have read several books in preparation for investing in a reef tank, and this is by far the best I've seen.

5 comments about Simon & Schuster'S Guide To Freshwater And Marine Aquarium Fishes.

1. Check the publication date for this book. I had a copy of this one in high school! Good pictures (especially of East Atlantic animals) but forget the care information - hopelessly outdated.



2. and book for the determined aquarist. However, this book is geared more toward aquarium species than ones found in the ocean or freshwater lakes. For instance, the Asian pufferfish is a species that has never been mentioned in any field guide, except this one. Without a doubt, it is an aquarium hybrid. There are not very many species of betas, fightingfish, or goldfish covered here. A person looking for heavy coverage of that will be slightly disappointed.
   The other fishes covered, such as puffers, triggerfish, or cowfish, have more species listed, and more details given. People interested in pufferfish (such as me), will find this guide useful. The only downside that takes away one star is that some species are hybrids, including betas and goldfish. Most triggerfish and cowfish are authentic species.
   If you are looking for a field guide to take along with you on a scuba diving trip to the Caribbean, forget it. This is not the one. However, if you are searching for fish to put in your aquarium, this book is definetely for you..



3. I bought this book as a fish familiarization reference after setting up my aquarium with another book and am glad I did. To say this is a bad intro book on aquariums is an understatement. Anyone considering fish as a hobby would immediatly change their mind upon reading the introduction to this book (which covers setting up an aquarium). For one thing it is way too scientific with diagrams of how pumps work and loads of discussion on things you don't need to know in detail and glaring lack of easy to understand explanations on what you do need to know.

   I read a 40 page Wal-Mart book on setting up an aquarium that was 100 times better than this guide in that respect. So, if you're setting up a new aquarium and want to know (in English) how to set up an aquarium, or want to know information on aquarium products, chemicals, techniques, etc. don't use this book to do it. Any of a dozen short, "so you want to buy a fish" guides will do. You don't need to 4 pages of when/how/why to quarentine fish in order to set up your first aquarium. And even if you did, this book doesn't describe the "how-to's" well enough anyway.

   This book IS a pretty good guide to freshwater and saltwater fishes, plants, reptiles, and invertibrates (like crabs, starfish, etc.) It covers about 300 specimens in total, 88 of which are freshwater fish and about 100 salt water fish. The rest fall into the other categories. It's not comprehensive by any means. There's ONE entry for Goldfish, for instance, even though there are dozens of readily available variations of goldfish. The one entry will give you generally what you need for the entire family, but it won't show you pictures of the many flavors available. Many generally available fish are also not in the book at all - but most are.

   This book does, however, cover a good range of common freshwater and saltwater aquarium fish. And each entry discusses what you need to know about that fish such as required temperature, food, characteristics, behavior and what other fish (or fish types) it gets along with. All this information is necessary to have a happy community (or species) aquarium.

   This book does Not adequately cover breeding fish and other expert topics. Its claim as "A guide for beginners and experts alike" is a bit of an overstatement in that regard. (At least that's my opinion.)

   My conclusion is that I like it for what I got it for - pictures of possible additions to my aquarium with a general description of needs, behavior, etc of each fish. I didn't buy it as a comprehensive guide or a guide to setting up my aquarium. In my opinion, if you want that information go elsewhere. There may even be better pictoral fish guides, but I liked the compact size of the book and the easy to swallow ($$) price tag. Happy Fish Keeping




4. Awesome reference guide (I have a 1977 edition).

   Over 300 full-color photos of freshwater & marine fishes, plants, reptiles and invertibrates. Includes common names, scientific names, families, distribution in the wild (where do these things live), a good verbal description, as well as a good photo, pH, temperature, water hardness, light and other pertinent info about where it lives, and what it needs in an aquarium, feeding info (a bit sketchy there, unless you are already knowledgable), as well as behavioral and compatability information (a MUST for keeping social fishes with others, and keeping those that don't get along apart from each other!)

   Basic aquarium knowledge is not required to enjoy the book, but to use the technical stuff for fish keeping, one must have some other background info (another book on the basics, or several trips and brain picking of a reputable pet shop employee is helpful!)

   Basic chemistry knowledge (especially dilutions [YES! There really is a use for all that math you took through jr. college!] for the disease treatment section is a must of using this to treat diseases)

   Fish diseases section is small, but to the point, and covers most common diseases one will see in aquarium fishes, especially fresh water.

   If you want to keep a salt water aquarium, this is a good reference, but you'll also need a great salt water aqaurium book!

   My edition also does not cover Chloramines, which were added to our tap water after the book was published - use GOOD, distilled bottled water whenever possible, or perhaps a reverse osmosis system w/ filteration, if your house is so equipped. For salt water, I've found it best to change out water directly from the ocean (away from the coastline and rivers), but then too you risk getting diseases in your aquarium that way... I did keep a star fish (sea star)and a Spanish Shawl nudibrach in a goldfish bowl this way for about 3 years, then when we moved sent them back to the ocean... They were awesome, but required we change the water abuot every 2-3 days.

   This is an awesome book, great pictures, but I'd suggest also getting another to supplement this one... My supplement is about 30+ years old, and is no longer in print, and I've not seen one in years.




5. YES, as title says - Simon and Schuster's Nature Guide Series - and I have several, are extremely easy to use. They do not contain alot of details about subjects - but enough to identify different aquarium fishes. And the pictures are quite good.
   I have enjoyed this book and utilized it often to identify many fish.

2 comments about Koi and Garden Pools: A Complete Introduction.

1. Koi keeping is an ancient art and little with raising koi has changed. The historical references are still accurate and the preadators as well. It's a pretty good place to start when learning about koi. But there are newer problems that have arisen health wise and there's only little in the book about koi types. I think that if you can get a different "intro to koi" book, you should.



2. this book has information about,koi as an antient hobby, judging koi, Competitions, Breeding koi, Varieties of koi, koi as pets, The pond flora, And The pond fauna

1 comments about Fishkeeper's Guide to African Cichlids: A Splendid Introduction to This Diverse and Attractive Group of Tropical Freshwater Fishes.

1. Highly rated.For the African lover & Mbuna lover info. is wonderful. Pictures splendid. Full info. on breeding,compatibility,tank etc. One of the best books on the subject I've seen.