Koi: Everything About Selection, Care, Nutrition, Diseases, Breeding, Pond Design and Maintenance, and Popular Aquatic Plants (Barron's Complete Pet Owner's Manuals)

Rating:
Summary: very good for the price
Review: If this were an expensive book, I wouldn't rate it so highly, but it has more information than you'd think for a cheap little paperback. The koi varieties section is mediocre, but you want a big glossy hardcover for that anyway, right? The advice on koi handling and transport is outstanding, with great emphasis on minimizing stress to your fish. There is also information on plants, something most koi keepers disdain to mention. Another reviewer thought the author was against wheat germ sticks for koi--he's not condemning them, just saying there's no proof they make a difference in over-wintering. So much of koi advice is unsupported, it doesn't hurt to mention the fact.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: If you're a beginner at having a pond and keeping koi, this is a great book. It has everything from digging the pond, filters and pumps...to everything you need to know to keep the pond clean for your fish. The book identifys the various breeds of koi, with a complete section on diseases.

Rating:
Summary: Ok
Review: This book has all the information you need on keeping Koi. Don't let its small size fool you. I have browse through all available Koi books, this book is the only one you need. You will not get more information from other books, except for more pictures. Buy this book and another book titled "The ponder's Bible" for excellent information on pond building and maintenance. These two books will be more than enough for keeping Koi sucessfully.

Rating:
Summary: One of the two books you need.
Review: This book has all the information you need on keeping Koi. Don't let its small size fool you. I have browse through all available Koi books, this book is the only one you need. You will not get more information from other books, except for more pictures. Buy this book and another book titled "The ponder's Bible" for excellent information on pond building and maintenance. These two books will be more than enough for keeping Koi sucessfully.

Rating:
Summary: Good, but could be better
Review: This book includes everything you need to take care of koi, but sometimes in too much detail. Many of the items in this book are exactly the opposite of what I have read elsewhere (e.g wheatgerm sticks are bad for koi??)
While too much detail is usually the problem, there are also many parts when there are not enough facts to actually understand what thi book is trying to say.
It's an OK beginners guide, but some parts can be tedious and confusiong.

Rating:
Summary: Ok
Review: Where's the part about behavior, the part about training your fish to come on over (admittedly this is easy) and how about a more comprehensive types and markings - it was also sad they really skipped over butterfly koi. Otherwise nice pictures and a good disease section.

Oh well. Nice book to have, but it is not by any means complete.

Rating:
Summary: good for beginners or those ....
Review: who have koi. Good section on dieseases and descriptions on the different color paterns of the various classes of koi. A must for the beginner or someone doing a school project or for those just thinking about adding a pond and koi to their property.