mayol magic
i loved this book- it is a very interesting insight into the mind of mayol and his life- and what a life!! and what wisdom to share with us- thanks Jacques!!!
Water World
I first heard of the late Jacques Mayol from the now classic cult movie "The Big Blue". Judging by this encyclopedic work, the real Jacques Mayol was a more interesting character than his celluloid image. "Homo Delphinus" is clearly a work of love and a beautiful book. It is published in a large glossy format with stunning photos. It is difficult to classify the book as it is a combination of science, semi-science, ecology, philosophy and mysticism. Mr. Mayol is successful in producing a touching work that summarizes his life long romance with the aquatic world and his hopes and visions for the future.
As I said, the book is encyclopedic - Mr. Mayol covers a wide range of topics- and this is also one of the weaknesses of the book. At times I felt that the author was rambling a bit. Perhaps a good editor would have helped Mayol be more focused.
The translation is not always smooth. From the book itself it is unclear if the translation was done from the original French, the Italian version or both.
I was very interested to read that Mayol did not take kindly to the fact that freediving has become a type of extreme sport. He feels that this is dangerous and misconstrues the real spirit of apnea diving.
I would recommend this book to anybody interested in the oceans, marine mammals or diving.
If I could, I would have rated the book 4 1/2 stars.
Disappointing
I am a great admirer of Mr. Mayol. Since a child I felt always impressed about his contributions to science and conservationism. However, I just felt so disappointed when I read Homo Delphinus. Through it, he tries to cover many topics, but in such a superficial way that it made me anxious for not getting into any point at all. And his theory about the "homo delphinus" is only a collection of cliches and general thoughts.
With respect to the book itself, it lacks the quality of modern books and the photography has been poorly incorporated.
I am sure many people will love this book, but I expected far more from such a remarkable man as Jacques Mayol.
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