Amazon.co.uk Reviews With some 25,000 species, there are many more kinds of fish than mammals alive today. To scan the whole of their world is a tall order but Frances Dipper's Extraordinary Fish provides a beautifully illustrated overview of these remarkable creatures, who were around over 350 million years ago. Since they have been around for a lot longer than mammals it is not surprising that they are so diverse and successful. Fish have occupied virtually all the corners of the aquatic world from the wonderful variety of cichlids which live far inland in the lakes of the East African Rift Valley to the rat-tails which haunt the wreck of the Titanic and the monstrous-looking angler fish of ocean depths. As an expert on fish and author of a number of popular books on marine life, Frances Dipper is well equipped to introduce the huge welter of information about fish to the general reader. Packed with information, and with an illustration on practically every page, Extraordinary Fish shows how life, survival and reproduction are as difficult for a fish as for any other animal. In the aquatic world Nature can be just as red in tooth if not in claw as on land. There are timely reminders of how important fish are to life in general and how foolish we are to allow overfishing. Extraordinary Fish is one of three spin-offs (with Killer Whales and Dolphins) from the hugely successful Blue Planet book and BBC TV series. Ideal for any wannabe ichthyologist, Extraordinary Fish has an index and further information for school children lucky enough to have this informative and attractive book in their library or home.-- Douglas Palmer
