Blue Wolf Reviews

Tag: beaches

  • Dr Rip’s Essential Beach Book

    Dr Rip’s Essential Beach Book

    Everything you need to know about surf, sand and rips

    Considering the number of mishaps and rescues we have at our beaches each year; I believe Dr Rips Essential Beach Book is a book that should be owned by all beach goers.

    It covers situations all over the globe moving from photographs of the biggest waves (in Portugal) to a beach in Stanley (Tasmania.) The author also discusses many aspects of the beach which range from different sands and their composition, to rips, how to escape them and what to do if bitten by stingers.

    The ability to spot a rip when swimming at a surf beach is a great benefit. Even more important though is what you should do if caught in a rip. One theory is to swim parallel to the beach to get out of the pull of the rip, however, we are told that “Rips don’t always flow straight out from the beach….and can be from 5-50 metres wide.” Here the author emphasises the importance of swimming between lifeguards’ flags.

    Rob covers a variety of fascinating aspects of the oceans. He looks at waves and the science of their formation, sand dunes and beach hazards. He also describes the subtle differences between beaches and things to look out for. Some beaches will have big waves, some will be steep and narrow, and some will be wide. The different types of beaches can be identified all over the world.

    Dr Rips Essential Beach Book is such an entertaining book to read. It has been broken up into many short chapters so you can choose which one is relevant to you. The photographs show exactly what the author has implied and educate the reader clearly. It is a fascinating glimpse into our love of the sea.

  • Australia: Illustrated

    Australia: Illustrated

    What a fantastic way to show someone the many facets of Australia. Tania McCarthy has presented this book by firstly looking at overall aspects of Australia, and then taking each State and Territory at a time, for closer examination. She has done this in such an interesting way that you can’t help but be drawn in. The illustrations are very detailed and yet convey the exact idea she wishes to share.

    The first double spread shows a map of Australia with many names written and next to it a list of very Australian objects and foods.’ Washing lines, prawns, footy, The Reef ‘, to show a few. A double page spread has the heading “Diversity,” which illustrates the many types of people who populate Australia. We look at Native Animals, Endangered Animals, Bush Tucker and precious rocks such as Uluru and the Bungle Bungles.

    There are a few pages dedicated to sport and showing some of the many games Australians play. A page on slang words is included as are many Iconic Australian sportspeople. Now we come to the section where each State or Territory is dealt with individually. We have the double page spreads showing icons of each area, foods, transport and beaches. In Queensland names of trees and pictures of Daintree leaves are shown along with a Queenslander home and breeds of cattle. The islands off the Queensland coast are named on a map.

    Each state has been well represented and named. There is an enormous amount of information in this book, but the key to its success is the presentation. The illustrations are varied and show a great diversity to explain a fact. The Painted Desert in South Australia is shown as a painting done by babies, while Tasmania’s seafood is shown by a full-page illustration of kids snorkelling in the water surrounded by the wealth of seafood off the coast.

    This is a book for adults and children to pore over and dissect. It will be read many times and picked up to scan pages at random. The author has chosen an interesting and captivating way to present a huge amount of detail. This would be a great gift for tourists as well as informing children about our country.