1 comments about The Super Simple Guide to Koi (Super Simple Guide).

1. I love my Koi and need information on
   Koi's so this book was great to have.

No comments about Setup and Care of Saltwater Aquariums (Animal Planet Pet Care Library).

4 comments about McClane's Field Guide to Saltwater Fishes of North America.

1. This is a pretty good field guide. There is a lot of information on alot of species. I wish there were pictures of every species, but in many cases the descriptions are good enough.
   
   I would recommend this book as a companion to "A Field Guide to Atlantic Coast Fishes : North America (Peterson Field Guides)"



2. This book has been a constant companion on nearly all of my fishing trips, regardless of location. I am currently on my second copy- the first was worn out from repeated use ! When a question arises about habitat,water preference, etc., we whip out the ole' McClanes to settle the argument.The pictures offer a true rendition of the fish which aides in rapid identification.The descriptions give vital information, while remaining brief enough to allow the book to function as a true "field" guide.I highly recommend this book to any angler or saltwater fish enthusiasts in need of a pocket guide.



3. This book is very useful in every facet of salt water fishing, from fish physiology and habits to tackle selection. A must for every salt water fisherman.
   
   This book is equally as good as "McClane's Field Guide to Freshwater Fishes of North America."



4. McClane's saltwater fish identification guide is a must for every angler -- sunburned beginner or salty old pro -- who casts a line into our bays and oceans. The most outstanding among this guide's many strengths are its clear, concise writing in the description of each fish, and the strikingly life-like, full-color artistic renditions of most of the fish. The fish are organized by family; so where there are related species on the Atlantic and Pacific sides (e.g., among sea bass), the book does jump somewhat to and fro. However, with its thorough index and vivid illustrations, any saltwater angler should be able to locate that "mystery fish" in McClane's within less than a minute. This book accompanied me on every fishing trip in my years of angling in South Florida and the Keys; and many an unknown fish was revealed through McClane's pages. With this book, the difference between sheepshead and spadefish (for example) is obvious -- in feeding habits, location, water preferences and any characteristic of appearance. Whether you catch a Spanish mackeral, ladyfish, jack crevalle or even the ugly (but tasty!) guitarfish, McClanes can teach you all the important information about it, quickly. It's the perfect size for the tacklebox; but be sure to put it in a freezer bag to keep it dry.

4 comments about Breeding & Raising Angelfishes.

1. This is about the best source of information available on fresh water Angelfish, but it needs a bit of improvement in the following areas:
   
   1. The author is very knowledgeable in his subject but spends too much
   effort in side issues rather than more detailed steps in the breeding
   and raising of baby Angelfish. As an example, he recommends hatching
   out the eggs in a one gallon jug but does not provide any details
   their subsequent transfer to a raising tank. i.e. When to do this; How
   to physically move them; How to match the water in the jug with the
   water in the raising tank.
   
   2. The book would be improved greatly if it was first reviewed by a
   competent editor or technical writer. It is not a novel, but a manual
   that should subscribe to simple but complete steps in the care and
   breeding of these fish. The publisher, Tropical Fish Hobbyist (THF)
   did not properly do their homework on this book.
   
   In any event, it did provide the best source of information on this subject and is a worthwhile investment to add to your library.



2. Very well written and thorough.
   
   If you are just getting started or an expert, or just curious, this book is one of the best.



3. An Informative Guide To Breeding And Raising Angelfishes by tropical fish expert Ed Stansbury is an informative introduction to the selection, maintenance, and nutritional care for angelfish. Descriptively exploring variations of angelfish and particulars of genetics, Breeding And Raising Angelfishes knowledgeably presents details of water quality, dietary aspects, reproduction, and diseases with respect to the quite beautiful and enduringly popular angelfish. An Informative Guide To Breeding And Raising Angelfishes is very strongly recommended as introductory reader for anyone searching for a "user friendly" guide to assist them in the proper care and assessment of health and longevity of their angelfish.



4. An Informative Guide To Breeding And Raising Angelfishes by tropical fish expert Ed Stansbury is an informative introduction to the selection, maintenance, and nutritional care for angelfish. Descriptively exploring variations of angelfish and particulars of genetics, Breeding And Raising Angelfishes knowledgeably presents details of water quality, dietary aspects, reproduction, and diseases with respect to the quite beautiful and enduringly popular angelfish. An Informative Guide To Breeding And Raising Angelfishes is very strongly recommended as introductory reader for anyone searching for a "user friendly" guide to assist them in the proper care and assessment of health and longevity of their angelfish.

2 comments about The Super Simple Guide to Corals (Super Simple Guide To...).

1. I feel this book is fairly informative. Although it does not have as many pictures as some other ones, it does have a great deal of text.
   It states all the required info- common names, scientific name, (usually a 2 paragraph description,) lighting, current, feeding, compatibility, placement, and hardiness. I
   t also gives you info on reproduction/propagation which, if you want to start fragging, is a great bonus, as well as other info on the specimen.
   It's a very informative yet small (130 pgs.) book. The first 5 chapters talk about Coral Biology, the next 3 talk about Coral Husbandry, their is another chapter about propagation and one about understanding corals in general, and lastly there are around 50+ pages on soft/hard corals and tips on picking the right ones!
   
   Overall I'd give this a 4 out of 5. If it had a few more pictures of different species it'd be an all inclusive book!



2. if you are new to reef keeping, then this book is for you. this book will prepare you for more in depth books on corals in the furure. i finished this book in 1 hour.

3 comments about Your Healthy Garden Pond (Interpet Handbooks).

1. I used Interpet Products available from my local garden centre and I decided to check out some of the books advertised with their products and so ordered the "Your Healthy Garden Pond".
   I have read this book and found it a very useful reference,easy to read and with good illustrations. I would recommend it to anyone with a small garden pond.



2. This is a very good book for those who already have a pond. It does not get into the design and construction of ponds, but concentrates on maintaining the pond you have. This is exactly what I was looking for. I did not need to design or construct a pond; however, I did need the knowledge to maintain an existing pond, and this book fit the bill perfectly.
   
   It covers:
   * Water quality - the nitrogen cycle and what tests you need to perform
   * Filtration - types of filters, filter media, cleaning filters
   * Algae and plants - types of plants and how to grow them, how to contain algae
   * Fish - the different types of fish suitable for a pond and how to diagnose problems
   * Pond cleaning - when and how to clean the pond
   * Seasonal maintenance. - fall and winter preparations
   
   Also this book is illustrated with many full color pictures so you can see clearly what the author is talking about.



3. Borrowed this book from the library but have to buy it. It's a good reference and does great explanations. Real helpful for a novice like me.

1 comments about Setup & Care of Garden Ponds (Animal Planet Pet Care Library).

1. Part of the superbly produced 'Animal Planet & Pet Care Library' series from T.F.H. Publications, "Setup And Care Of Garden Ponds" by Terry Anne Barber is a profusely illustrated, step-by-step instruction guide covering all aspects of creating, planting, stocking, and maintaining a garden pond of any size appropriate for the available terrain. There are many factors involved, including the benefits of garden ponds, determining the desired pond size and shape, choosing and planting garden pond compatible plants, selecting the proper fish and other aquatic animal life for the pond, keeping the water in a pond healthy and avoiding such biohazards as mosquito breeding, and what is necessary to enjoy a garden pond in every season of the year. Thoroughly 'user friendly' in organization and presentation, "Setup And Care Of Garden Ponds" is enthusiastically recommended for anyone contemplating the creation or renewal of a garden pond.

5 comments about Dr. Axelrod's Atlas of Freshwater Aquarium Fishes.

1. The book serves to identifying any fish provided if one knows the scientific names. If the target audience are technically competent it will serve its intended purpose. But for the general hobbyists/fish keepers or even fish dealers the scientific names are impossible to remember. Even to pronounce them correctly seems impossible. By far the common names are more acceptable and meaningful to them. Even speaking to technical people the common names are more often used. I am not suggesting that the scientific names be dropped but be mention as an additional information to those who needs it. What I meant was that; the far the majority of hobbyists/fish keepers; young and old, technically minded or not would appreciate the common names as a reference.
   Personally, I do find it difficult to locate a fish. It must be somewhere in the book! Maybe it helps if you know the region of the world it comes from as that will narrow down your search.
   On the whole I know lots of work and effort has gone into the making of the book and credit must be given to all responsible.



2. I bought this book when I started getting really into the hobby and I absolutely am impressed with the quality of the photos, how the fish are separated by continent and other useful information. I frequently check back with the names of the fish and where these fish come from. I guess the only not serious complaint is that it does not contain the common name for the fish, only the latin. Although, I could see how hard it could be to list the several common names of each fish, since it's already so huge!



3. The book delivered by Amazon was in Excellent Condition.
   This Book displays pictures and details of fishes not available in other Atlas I have bought, so it is worth every dime.
   Large, clear pictures of all freshwater fishes, great for reference.



4. I bought this book to help me identify fish. Have it worked so far? No.
   
   First, it only names the fish in latin (scientific) name, which is a little frustrating to me. Sometimes, I need to cross info from other sources to reach the specimen I'm looking for.
   Second, you need to know the continent where it comes from.
   
   I've also found some errors in the information. The freshwater stingray, for example, is catalogued as an egglayer, while it's a livebearer fish.
   
   This books is huge, and looks great in your library or stacked in your desk.



5. This book has changed a lot since the first edition. Mostly, it has removed information and added pictures. LOTS of pictures. It is more of a coffee-table book than any kind of aquarium guide. But even the pictures are of uneven quality. I was shocked that the only picture included for a couple of fairly common fish were of dead, poorly-preserved specimens. Yikes!
   
   The authors' stated purpose for this book is "This book was created with the express purpose of making the identification of fishes easier for hobbyists, aquarists, and scientists alike."
   
   Well, if that was the goal, it fails miserably. The book is organized based on geographic area where the fish originates. Think about it. If you saw a fish and wanted to know what it was, would you somehow instinctively know which continent it came from? Of course not. You might want to identify it based on its colors or shape or whatever. The book does not function as an identification guide.
   
   Although most info has been removed, there is some very terse info below each picture as small text and icons. The text lists info such as pH, ideal water temperature (in Centigrade), maximum adult length (in cm), and minimum tank size (in litres). Although it does not tell you what these mean, any intermediate or higher fishhkeeper should be able to figure it out.
   
   The icons are not particularly clear unless you already know the fish. For example, the icon for egg-scatterer versus livebearer is only obvious if you know what the fish is to begin with. More importantly, I can find nowhere in the book where it actually tells what the icons mean. This is very sloppy.
   
   The index is also horrendous, failing to include a number of entries, and including numerous false entries. For example, the first page entry listed for Scleropages jardini sends you to a page that does not contain pictures of jardini, and in fact is a section for a different continent.
   
   Even the quality of the pictures is uneven. For some fish, the coverage is extensive, with a lot of pictures showing different color strains, breeding colors, and so on. Yet for other fish, the coverage is incomplete. For example, there are three pictures of Silver Arrowana, and all three show just-hatched arrowanas. Why not show an adult? The fish changes as it gets older. Also, there are only four pictures of Astronatus (Oscars), showing only 4 color patterns. It's absolutely shocking to me that the abino and tiger albino forms are not shown. They've been in the trade for well over a decade before this edition was published.
   
   My last complaint is that they have been adding pages by adding them as decimal additions. For example, they added 16 pages of pictures of Swordtails (16 pages!) after page 432, and numbered them as pages 432.01, 432.02, etc. The reason for this, of course, is that it means less work adjusting the index, etc., and 16 pages in one place from a publishing standpoint is easier, because it means not changing the rest of the plates. But from a reader's standpoint, it is sloppy and unforgivable, considering the price of the book.
   
   To summarize, this book contains an incredible array of pictures. On the plus side, it has pictures of many fish you'll find nowhere else. It is massive and impressive. The pages are slick and glossy and the physical production standards are high. On the down side, it is badly in need of extensive, high-quality, detailed editing to correct the numerous glaring errors and omissions.
   
   Frankly, this is overall a hugely disappointing effort and I simply can't recommend plunking down such a high price for this edition.

5 comments about Dr. Axelrod's Mini-Atlas of Freshwater Aquarium Fishes (Dr. Axelrod's Atlas of Freshwater Aquarium Fishes).

1. Nice big book with lots of nice pictures. My daughter is very interested and pretty knowledgeable of aquarium fish and found this book useful.



2. Definitely a very good reference guide for any freshwater enthusiast. The mini-atlas has every freshwater species beautifully diplayed in color photo. Under each color photo is a group of symbols. These symbols are defined in the book itself. The symbols convey what water conditions are appropriate, size of tank, food, swimming level, breeding type and level of aggression. The mini-atlas also has separate chapters on breeding, fish diseases, aquarium plants and tank set-up.
   
   The only negative point is that each fish is called by its scientific name. If you desire to know the common name (the name used in aquarium shops) you have to go to the back of the book and search an index of scientific names which then refers to the common name. This process is a bit cumbersome.
   
   All in all, this book is a nice addition to one's personal freshwater library. It's very complete and I find myself referring to it often.



3. From the reviews, I expected alot from this book. I know that it is old, but I was really disappointed. The information is not consistent and incomplete. Here are my issues:
   
   (1) All the pictures are grouped (i.e. Ciclids, etc.) together followed by the complete text instead of a picture with text of each kind of fish.
   (2) Everything is ordered by scientific name instead of common name. This makes the book less usefull to those who are new to freshwater fish.
   (3) Compared to other books, the photographs are not that good. In fact, some of them are out of focus.
   (4) The fact guide is totally useless as the information on how to intepret the what the legend means is not clear. For example, you see a temparature guide but not the upper or lower temperature.
   (5) With that many pictures the book, I expected the book to focus on different species but instead there are multiple pictures of the same kinds of certain fish just because they have different color scheme.
   (6) The biggest complaint that I have is that the information is not consistent and some are missing. Some pictures have both scientific and common names while others have just one name. Some have complete information, while others have partial (i.e. tank size, compatibility, etc.) or NO information at all.
   
   If you are buying this book because you just want something to read, go ahead and buy it. However, if you are buying this book because you are new to the freshwater fish keeping and need information about different kinds of fish to choose from...this book is totally useless. Useless, I say because there are more books out there with more complete information. If you look at the index and can't find the names of the fishes that you commonly see in aquarium fish shops, then the book is useless.



4. Need to know if a certain breed of unusual fish is compatible with, say, your angelfish? Dr. Axelrod knows. This atlas is amazing in it's depth for a "mini-atlas," with page after page of freshwater fish. And then he gets into the real meat of fishkeeping after that! Although it can occasionally be difficult to use (the fish are listed by their scientific name in general, not their common name, which can make looking up a certain fish difficult), all in all this is an incredible book, and one every fishkeeper should have on their bookshelf.



5. This book was great. The pictures were fantastic and it was very informative. It is simple enough for a child to use.

4 comments about The Everything Tropical Fish Book.

1. Mom drops son off at 6:00pm for a long weekend with a leaking bag of live tropical fish. I have a dog, but he knows where I keep his food and brings me the bowl when it is empty. I wasn't sure these fish would be as resourceful as the dog. However, I shared my son's excitement and reminded him to thank his mom as he kissed her good-bye. I saw from the smirk in her little smile, she thought she handed me a pack of trouble. Actually it worked out well. My boy and I took his fish to the pet store and the clerk helped us pick out an aquarium and the supplies we would need. The store was closing and she offered to help us set things up. Jennifer followed us home and we were in business in about an hour. We went out for pizza and ended the evening at 10:00pm. My son calls almost every day to check on his fish and Jennifer calls about twice a week. Jennifer and The Everything Tropical Fish Book, have made caring and sharing our tropical fish a wonderful experience for my son and I. I highly recommend this book. Thanks Mom.



2. I picked this book up when I was serious into Chiclids. It's a typical "dummies" book format with a lot of information crammed into one book. I recommend it if you are first looking to get started in aquariums.



3. Many books on this topic are as confusing as the vast range of fish supplies in the pet stores. As a first-time betta owner, I thought my fish was just aging till a slightly more knowledgeable friend told me that "gray" means "illness," and not "old age." The chapter on fish health was very helpful and now it looks like we may get the full life-span out of him. Information in this excellent book is easy to find, well-organized, straightforward, and is just enough to bring you to a level of competency without information-overload. If you're just starting out with an aquarium or trying to decide if you want one, this book is all you need! Save the more intensive books for when you're sure this is a hobby you really want to invest in for the long term.



4. This book was well organized and provided lots of information on the Goldfish, Koi, freshwater and saltwater aquariums.

   This is a good book for beginners and experts alike. I have read it cover to cover and will refer back to if often as I become more interested in my new hobby.

   A bit lite on acutal fish information, but an excellent source on all basic information about setting up different types of aquariums