Seashells: Jewels from the Ocean

Budd Titlow has put together one of the most fascinating books I've ever read about seashells. As a native South Carolinian born in Charleston, I've spent many hours walking our shores looking at and for seashells. I've also walked beaches in many other places searching for unique, interesting and beautiful shells...I found them all in this book. Every turn of a page brought a new understanding of and appreciaton for these magnificent examples of Gods creation. Thank you for writing what has become for me, one of the most appreciated books in our home.

Seashells: Jewels from the Ocean is a beautiful book to have, either as a coffee table book, or just a book to sit down and read for pleasure. The photography is fantastic and the descriptions of all the different shells is very interesting. I am really glad I purchased this book.

I was really looking for a good field guide on seashells since I'm a big collector and always am in the need of one, but I found a different yet interresting one instead. If you are looking for general info on seashells, this is the one. This is not a field guide, nor is it a coffee table book. It is an informative guide on seashells. It does have beautiful photographs, at least one on almost every page. It explains just about anything anyone might like to know about seashells. What are seashells?, The 5 different classes or types of shells, their anatomy, how they are constructed, Why they have different textures, forms, colors and patterns on them, where to find them(the habitats and distribution)the history of mans uses of shells from ancient times to present day, tips on shell collecting and environmental threats, and issues. This is not a very large book, about medium size but packed with information of what I have just explained. Interresting stuff. It does however mention where a few shells are found that are pictured in the book. But I repeat again, this is not a field guide. This book has 112 pages, I would say about a half inch thick-that's not too thick. Size is 8X10 inches. A very nice book though for what is is about. I give it 5 stars for that. It does help anyone who wants to know more about shells. Even me, I am a big shell collector and always looking for all the information I can find on shells. It's better to research as much as you can for your own knowledge. It does come in handy when anyone sees your collection and asks you all sorts of questions! Hope all this helps you out! Rehana(Chicago, IL)

One is not enough....and I don't just mean seashells. I bought this book to give as a gift and was so impressed that I'm buying another for myself. Exquisite photography, excellent layout and comprehensive text. You can just as easily get lost in these pages as you can scouring the beach for that perfect treasure.