The sound of the sea Seashells and the fate of the oceans

Review by Publisher's Weekly Review

Seashells--and the mollusks that grow them--are a potent force in nature and society, writes journalist Barnett (Blue Revolution) in this riveting survey. "From the shell cults of prehistory to the impressive number of mollusk-inspired Pokémon characters," Barnett writes, "no creatures have stirred human admiration... as intimately," and in a globe-trotting quest, she visits sometimes unexpected places where shells appear: In England, the White Cliffs of Dover are made from ancient shell deposits, while a pre-Columbian Peruvian temple has still-playable horns made from conches. Cowrie shells, meanwhile, were an early-modern global currency, and writers including Edna St. Vincent Millay and Italo Calvino were shell-obsessed. Barnett also covers the contemporary collapse of mollusk populations from overharvesting, pollution, habitat destruction, and climate change. There's much quaint and curious lore, and she proves shelled animals are surprisingly adventurous (cone snails spear fish with their poisonous proboscis, for example). Throughout, Barnett delivers the goods with erudition and evocative prose: Scallops, she observes, are "jet-propelled, zigzagging, shell-clapping, free spirits... the eye rows glow battery-charge blue, like tiny flying saucers have landed in the seagrass." The result is an entertaining, colorful tour of a surprisingly dynamic part of nature. Agent: Elise Capron, Sandra Dijkstra Literary. (July)

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Review by Library Journal Review

Environmental journalist and science writer Barnett (author of the National Book Award-longlisted Rain) explores what seashells can tell us about the animals who inhabit them, the ecosystems they grow in, and the people who use them. The book details an astounding variety of marine mollusks, like the lettered olive, wentletrap, and lightning whelk (three species of sea snail). Particularly engaging chapters offer insight on how shells from far abroad have been found in Neanderthal sites, in the ruins of Pompeii and Cahokia, and in Mayan graves. Barnett explains how humans around the world have for centuries consumed, decorated, collected, and traded seashells and have valued shells as art, money, weapons, and building materials. She also discusses how shells have been appraised by museums and studied by scientists. Barnett also explores how seashells can demonstrate the dangers of pollution, coastal dredging, and rising ocean temperatures and acidity, even as they reveal adaptations to these new conditions. The book is enhanced by occasional black-and-white historical illustrations of shells. VERDICT Barnett's in-depth and lively narrative about seashells crosses disciplines, from architecture to neuroscience to alternative energy. A delightful, informative, and momentous read for both enthusiasts and readers who've never picked up a shell.--Catherine Lantz, Univ. of Illinois at Chicago Lib.

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Review by Kirkus Book Review

An exploration of the history and biology of mollusks. As environmental journalist Barnett notes, humans have long been captivated by seashells ("the work of marine mollusks"), collecting and using them for art, jewelry, and currency. In this well-researched, consistently illuminating work, the author smoothly combines environmental science and cultural history to trace the origins and decline of mollusks. The book is divided into chapters based on a particular species--among others, the chambered nautilus, the lightning whelk, the money cowrie, the lettered olive, and the queen conch. In each chapter, Barnett discusses the biology of the species, including the formation of its shell, as well as related culture and history. She also explores the factors that have led to the declines of all of these species, including climate change and overfishing. Barnett discusses observations and writings of other naturalists and scientists that she has found significant. Among them are Leonardo da Vinci, who wrote about visible fossils in the hillsides of Italy, testifying to changes the Earth has experienced across millennia; Julia Ellen Rogers, who authored The Shell Book (1908), which "brought the world of seashells to Americans during the national zeal for nature as a hobby"; and Thomas Say, the "father of American Conchology." Barnett explores the many ways that Native Americans used shells in their daily lives--as tools, in trade, and for ceremonial purposes--as well as the various historically significant shell mounds that have been discovered throughout the U.S. The author also takes us around the world: to the Maldives, where ancient folktales of queens and a "cowrie monopoly" are vanishing; the Lowcountry coast of the Carolinas and Georgia, home of Gullah Geechee tradition; Andros Island in the Bahamas, where Barnett investigated the effects of the annual Conch Fest; and Florida's Sanibel Island, where "every tide brings a treasure hunt." Fans of Rebecca Giggs' excellent Fathoms will find much to savor here as well. An absolutely captivating nature book. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

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