Saved By the Sea: A Love Story with Fish - Hardcover

Helvarg, David

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0312567065 ISBN 13: 9780312567064

Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books, 2010

Synopsis

From bodysurfing in Central American war zones, diving barrier reefs with his tragically fated love, Nancy, or being bumped by a whale off Antarctica, David Helvarg has lived a life often as endangered as the ocean he now works to protect. Saved by the Sea is the story of this longtime journalist's personal love, loss, and redemption in the free-flowing heart of our blue-marble planet. This eloquent and honestly told tale of the changes in one man's journey and the world's ocean over the last half-century is also a profound, startling, and sometimes surprisingly funny reflection on the state of our seas and the intimate ways in which our lives are all linked to the natural world around us. Saved by the Sea will bring salt water to your eyes and small waves of hope to your heart.

About this title

About the Author

DAVID HELVARG is founder and president of the Blue Frontier Campaign, a Washington, D.C.-based organization working for ocean and coastal conservation. An award-winning journalist, he has written for the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, Smithsonian, Popular Science, Sierra, and The Nation, and has produced more than forty documentaries for PBS, the Discovery Channel, and others. His previous books include The War Against the Greens, Blue Frontier, 50 Ways to Save the Ocean, and Rescue Warriors. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Review

“Helvarg draws upon his unique experiences and background as an environmental journalist and documentary filmmaker, and writes in a clear and vivid style. He expands the readers’ awareness, hope and concern for the ocean environment. . . an inspiring read. And an important one."--San Francisco Chronicle

“Ever since the publication of his wave-making book Blue Frontier in 2001, David Helvarg has become the premier chronicler of America’s complex relationship with our oceans and coasts, our last frontier...In his new book, Saved by the Sea: A Love Story with Fish, Helvarg adds a new and moving dimension to his work by exploring his own personal relationships with the ocean and the three main women in his life: his mother, girlfriend, and sister.”--Honolulu Weekly

“There’s something special about writers who think deeply over decades about the ocean. In their memoirs, they seem to have globe-trotting lives, unhampered by ordinary boundaries and borders.”--LA Times

“This is a heartfelt tribute to the sea’s power and importance in our lives in addition to being a very human story that will resonate in the heart of every reader.”--Tucson Citizen "In this inspiring memoir, an activist expands the reader's awareness of the ocean environment."--SFGate.com “An elegant memoir of a meaningful life.”--Kirkus Reviews

“A compelling picture of how deep those connections to the sea can run.”--Emagazine.com

"His writings can be read as both a memoir and a plea, but most of all, as a loving tribute to the natural world."--Sierra Magazine

“There are many books available that delve into the complexities of the oceans or detail the many facts and figures to document the threats faced by the oceans and the marine life within. But there are few that make a personal one-to-one connection... Saved by the Sea is a fascinating look at a man’s life and how the thread of the ocean is woven throughout. . . . Full of personal experiences that emphasize to the reader that mankind is connected to the sea, whether man knows it or not.”--RT Sea Blog

"Helvarg offers us a glimpse not only of his own amazing and often heartrending adventures in and around the ocean but also gives insight into the human condition....A great read from an outstanding writer."--PHILIPPE COUSTEAU, ocean explorer

“Read Saved by the Sea for pleasure, read it for adventure, read it because it conveys the gift of being allowed to slip into David Helvarg’s  world and  view the ocean, and humankind,  with profound new understanding.  But beware:  This book has the power to change the way you think about the world, about yourself, and the future of humankind.”--SYLVIA EARLE, ocean explorer and author of The World is Blue

"In this powerful story of love, loss, and resolve, Helvarg bares his heart and takes us through his life and across the oceans, letting us see that the antidote to all is simply to have something to believe in, and a cause to serve."--CARL SAFINA, author of Song for the Blue Ocean

 "This is a love story, filled as most of them are with a certain amount of pain and a great deal of pleasure. David Helvarg has done an awful lot to protect the world's oceans, not least this fine piece of writing!"--BILL McKIBBEN, author of The End of Nature “In David Helvarg’s remarkable life as journalist and activist, he has participated in and reported on many of the major events of the last five decades, from the Viet Nam War to Hurricane Katrina. Throughout his odyssey, Helvarg’s love of the sea has provided him both a cause to fight for and a cure for his ills.  In Saved by the Sea, the reader will discover why he cares, and why he continues to fight for the oceans—and why we all need to.”--TED DANSON, actor  

Edition details

• Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books
• Publication date: 2010
• ISBN 10: 0312567065
• ISBN 13: 9780312567064
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 304