The Jade Coast: Ecology of the North Pacific Ocean

Rating:
Summary: Knowledgeable and well-organized
Review: This book is an introduction to the ecology of the coastline between northern California and Alaska. It is an ambitious undertaking and the writer has been a park naturalist, wildlife biologist and Adjunct Professor of Biological Sciences at Simon Fraser University in British Columbia. He has a vast breadth and depth of knowledge of this topic and his research has been widely acclaimed.

Unfortunately this book does not display either the writer or the topic to advantage. Once in a while the writer's passion for the coast and his personal knowledge of it peeks through, but in general it just reads like a textbook. The material is thorough and well-organized but it just doesn't come to life for the reader. The illustrations are nice, but hardly spectacular when you consider the incredible beauty and variety of this long stretch of coastline.