3 comments about Aqualog: Loricariidae All L-Numbers, New 2nd. Edition.

1. All of the Aqualog books are excellent value, although they are not particularly cheap. They are full to the brim with first class colour photographs and to reproduce these in a book is an expensive process. Whether they are about the beautiful L Number now coming into the aquarist trade or some other species of fish they are the most comprehensive identification books you can buy. They never become dated because as new fish become available to the aquarist trade the books are updated. There is not a lot of literature on African cichlids so this book is invaluable.
   
   They do not deal with the basics of fish keeping, there are many and varied books that do that. They are in the main a fish identification encyclopaedia and not a lot more. But for those aquarists who are particularly interested in a single species they are indispensable.



2. This book is the best Loricariidae Identification book, it has massive of good quality pictures, it tells reader how big the species can be and little bit about how to keep them in captive. For each L number, there is a brief intro at the beginning of the book. Anyone loves plecos must own this book.



3. Very good. The L's reference book. Not good at all if what you're really looking is how to maintain, breed or make your Pleco happier.
   But if you just want to browse all species known so far, or recognize any Loricariidae you encounter - this is it. Lots of good pictures, all L Numbers up to 350, and LDAs up to 76 covered with a short symbols near the picture, translating into how much they grow, what they eat, how big should your tank be, kind of water conditions needed, etc...
   Mainly targeted at shopkeepers who always have a real hard time to identify this fishes. I love Plecos, so it was a must have for me!

1 comments about Marine Fish Culture.

1. This is the best aquaculture book I have read. The data, theory, and methods to be found in it surpass all that can be found elsewhere on the subject. The exhaustive bibliography is one of the largest and most relevant that I have seen. It is a "bible" for the marine fish culturist.

2 comments about Corydoras Catfishes (Complete Authoritative Guide).

1. This book is not particularly well suited to the aquarium hobbyist. Its tone tends toward the academic side, with emphasis on classification of different corydoras species. Perhaps even more disappointing from the hobbyist perspective, though, was the organization. The chapters are organized around specific families of corydoras, rather than being topically organized (history, care and feeding, breeding, etc.). That means if you want to find, for example, information on general care and feeding, you can't just flip right to that chapter. Instead, you'll have to search through each page of the book and gather various bits of information as you go.
   
   There's some good basic information in there that can be useful for the aquarist interested in raising corydoras. But it's not any more detailed than what you'll find on the web, and a whole lot harder to locate within the book. There is no index, so if you want to look up a particular species, it's going to take some tedious searching. You may do better searching for obscure species, but I was surprised, for example, to find almost no mention of corydoras julii, which is one of the more common species in stores. I would have expected some discussion of the frequent confusion between trilineatus and julii, for instance. All in all, it doesn't seem like a very practical guide to me, and I wouldn't recommend it unless you're really focused on taxonomy.



2. This book has some good basic information for the beginner in the corydora hobby. It was one of my first catfish books and helped me to learn some basic information in caring for my fish.

1 comments about Koi Appreciation: The First Step.

1. Koi Appreciation: The First Step by Kate McGill is a great book. Her introduction is superb. Defining "Appreciation" by expanding upon the words appearing in the dictionary and thesaurus is simply excellent. From the personal appreciation of Koi attachment, Ms McGill expands upon the "structured" approach in the appreciation of Koi. She covers body conformation, skin quality, qualities of color, patterns, pattern edges and balance, variety characteristics, and deportment.
   Then each following chapter covers the specific quality requirements relating to each specific variety of Koi. Varieties discussed are Kohaku, Taisho Sanke, Showa Sanshoku, Utsurimono, Bekko, Tancho, Asagi/Shusui, Koromo, Kin-Gin-Rin, Kawarigoi, Hikarimuji, Hikarimoyo and Hikari Utsuri.
   The colored Photographs are top draw. I really appreciated the photos depicting the negative qualities seen in Koi. A great learning tool.
   The final chapter; Beyond The First Step, covers why one Koi impacts us so. Dominating, impressing and compelling us to place it on a pedestal- to be inspired by a living art form.
   A great book in learning how to appreciate the qualities of Koi through the eyes of a judge.

No comments about What Fish? A Buyer's Guide to Tropical Fish: Essential Information to Help You Choose the Right Fish for Your Tropical Freshwater Aquarium (What Pet? Books).

3 comments about The Aquarium Fish Survival Manual.

1. I give it two thumbs up - or five stars. :-) I agree with a previous reviewer that indicated that it is his best aquarium reference book. The only thing that I would like to point out about this book that might make it slightly confusing to a prospective reader is that the author apparently resides in Britain. I found a few discrepancies in fish naming compared to pet shops in my area. Also, after I first set up my aquarium, my fish became ill with what the author refers to as White Spot. When I went to the pet shop looking for medication for White Spot, they didn't know what I was talking about. As it turns out, White Spot is known locally as Ick or Ich. If I had paid closer attention when reading, I would have noticed that the scientific name begins with Ich. To me, these are minor inconveniences in an otherwise well-written and well-organized book. In addition, the color photographs are excellent, making it easy to identify a species.

   I highly recommend this book.




2. This book is a very good all-round book; it both deals with setup and maintenance of the aquarium (location, filters, heating, water quality, etc), and has a lot of pictures of common plants and fish. It puts the various fish into categories like whether they function well in a communal aquarium, where they mostly stay in the tank (bottom, middle, top), and what their preferred food is (plant, livefeed, dried food). This is a book you will find yourself returning to again and again for reference. Highly recommended!



3. This book has a lot of information in it. It is written plainly, and is easy to understand. Sometime it gets a bit to detailed for the beginner in some sections like lighting. As a reference for plants and fish (fresh/marine) it's a good book to start with. In 12 years of fish keeping I have seen few books that can match it, especially for the price. I bought my copy back in 1995, and although I have many other books on the shelf on aquaria, this is the 1st book I grab.

   Cons: This book is written in Europe, so some of the equipment they picture is not available here, but it still gives you lots of facts & rules of thumb on fish keeping that you can use. It is a little short on water "how to" manipulate water attribute, it only talks about pH, ammonia, and nitrite levels. Water hardness, iron, and CO2 level info is missing, much more a beginner and intermediate level book.

No comments about Beginner's Guide to Aquarium Plants.

5 comments about Marine Atlas: The Joint Aquarium Care of Invertebrates and Tropical Marine Fishes.

1. I purchased this book as a reference for all marine fish and reef organisms only to find that the marine atlas has A LOT of invertibrates and fish but missing Clown fish. It never occurs to me that these popular fish are not included in the fish sections (although it is mentioned in the picture captions here and there, but no special fish section to describe such).

   As with one of the earlier reviewer commented, this was written and translated as a German book; maybe some fish types are not allowed to be sold in Germany but it is quite sad to see them selling the English version worldwide missing some of the most common species of fish that marine aquarist kept. Hopefully they will combine the entire volumne in the future for the worldwide market.




2. These reason Marine Angelfish and Butterflies are left out of this book and also the subsequent volumes, is that this is a German book written in English and the government of Germany banned the importation of all Angelfish and Buterflyfish. There is no point talking about how great Angelfish are if you cannot get them wheer you live. Also, I doubt the author has much pratical experience with them. That being said, it is still a great book that every serious hobbyist should have in their library. Volume Two covers sponges, soft corals, hard corals, and molluscs. Volume Three has more molluscs, worms, starfish, sea urchins, and sea cucumbers. There are even more volumes, I believe a total of five written now, but only these three in English.



3. This book is a great book if you wish to read up on a multitude of fish types, except angelfish, which are the most popular!

   I found it very frustrating when trying to decide on the last of seven fish to get for our aquarium, not to find the most popular in, what seemed to be, such a comprehensive book. There is also no clear indication of what follows in subsequent volumes so I don't even know if I buy those, whether I will find the missing chapter!

   The book also covers fish for both the diver and the aquarist and so as an aquarist I get very excited only to discover that most of the fish are not available at local pet/fish stores.

   Apart from these I was torn about my rating because it is a very well produced and thorough book except for those few foibles.




4. I started my first saltwater tank less than a month before I took this out from the library. I wanted to find a few "store bought" species I could mix with the ones I have captured on recent dives. This is an excellent book for anyone wanting a simple straight forward guide to the most commonly kept species. I have decided to buy this book, and the only thing bad which can be said about it is it doesn't include Octupi. (Only fish and invertebrates.) Since my library doesn't own volumes two or three I will take a chance and buy them to find out more about various mollusks I have collected.



5. Great set of pictures. The authors chose depth over breadth. The first volume covers several families, leaving others uncovered [or to be covered in the other volumes] - no angelfish, no damselfish, no porcupinefish, etc. I wish the publisher would have made this partial coverage more salient. On the other hand - you will find extensive coverage of surgeonfish, even those rare ones. Another bother is the not-so-detailed index. They either left out many items of interest or burried them deep in the book. Either way, the index can be improved. Bottom line: If you are just starting up, don't buy this book. As a supplemental reading, though, it's a good book.

2 comments about Mini-Aquariums.

1. This is my first time writing a review but I was so diappointed I didn't want someone else to make the same mistake. Because this book is definitely not what I thought it was going to be! It is VERY basic! Good for only someone very very new to the hobby!The first four chapters are about basic fishkeeping (water quality, pH, filtration, sickness) and personally I have read it much better explained in other books. As the owner of 7 saltwater aquariums (125g,75g,29g,55g,46g,10g,2g) I was hoping for more info about saltwater, but I found that the book talked alot more about freshwater. I also had not expected to find info about lizards and frogs! Personally I wouldn't try setting up any tank using only the advice in this book (much less a nano tank!!!). If you are a saltwater aquarist interested in starting a nano tank read "The Nano-Reef Handbook". It is a very informative book that I reference all the time. In fact it has been helpful in caring for my larger aquariums too. Basically I think you shoundn't waste your money on this book! Wish there had been a review I could have read when I bought this book! Anyway happy fishkeeping!



2. This is a great addition to my library of aquarium books. Although I can not condone squeezing any fish into a tank smaller than 10 gallons. These "Micro tanks", Would be great for a temporary display of plants only. Even small shrimp would be stressed in these small environments.

5 comments about Koi: Living Jewels of the Orient.

1. This is a good reference book for people new to the hobby. I especially like the section on the different varieties of koi.



2. Very informative. The best Koi book we have yet to buy.



3. This book has received such glowing reviews I felt the need to add a sour note. It is full of beautiful pictures and has lots of useful information, but it is not as exhaustive a reference as it would seem from its size. The chapters are divided between four authors, with uneven results. The water quality chapter wastes entire pages on step-by-step instructions on how to use a particular brand of water test (they come with instructions,we don't need this in a book). The filtration chapter is devoted almost exclusively to a particular filtration system that chapter's author designs and sells. On the other hand, most of the other chapters are at least adequate, and the koi varieties section is outstanding, with the clearest delineation of the many koi types I have ever read--anyone can tell a showa from a sanke after looking at the side-by-side comparison. This section alone makes the book worth buying.



4. There are not many Koi books in the market. I think this book is the best I ever read. It is very up todate information (technology) especially pond and filtration system. The pictures and diagrams are beautiful and easy to understand.



5. This beautiful, hard cover book has much to offer any person who is interested in caring for KOI>
   I bought the book as a Christmas gift for my husband's folks...
   They just installed a 16 X 33 foot Koi pond in their back yard.
   They have three little waterfalls the aerate the water, and are in the process of adding appropriate plants.
   They really do not know a thing about KOI.
   But I guess it's a new hobby for them....they're retired and
   perhaps need a new direction in life.
   I hope they read this book before they lose too many of those expensive, shiny fishies!
   I read the book prior to giving it to them, and it details the many names and types of KOI, (which means CARP in Japanese.)
   The book explains how one would proplery build an in-ground Koi pond, and shows many examples of how to go about this.
   It's facinating...did you know that KOI require a high protien diet for their health, and to maintain their beautiful, bright colorings? There is quite a variety of food available to give them.
   There is a ton of useful information in this book about KOI,
   and it makes a very nice gift for the Holidays.
   MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!