Uncovering the Hidden World of Fish: Exploring the Inner Lives of Our Aquatic Cousins

Shanasy Bratt: This is an extremely informative book for anyone even slightly interested in fish, whether they love aquariums, love to fish, or just interested in learning about the underwater world of fishes! Absolutely fascinating! Easy to read and will surprise you no matter what your knowledge of fish is!

United States on Jul 15, 2023

Dr. Miles: One Amazon reviewer admitted that they hadn't read beyond the opening section, and then said that this is not "an actual study on [sic] the intelligence, adaptability and versatility of different fish". Well, if they'd read beyond the first few pages then they'd have seen that that's exactly what this is! Except that that description doesn't do justice to how incredibly entertaining the book is.

More amazingly still, one person claims that the material is "hardly groundbreaking", thus proving that they, too, must have barely opened it. On virtually every page, Balcombe provides stunning, jaw-dropping facts which most of would never have believed possible. Reading this material is like being an alien who comes to planet Earth having previously always been told that mammals are incapable of complex thought or emotion, and who then, on arrival, gets their entire paradigm turned upside down. It's quite literally the most fascinating book I've ever read.

So why just one star? Well, some of the readers/reviewers were so annoyed by the morality-related comments in the opening pages that they decided not to take the book seriously, and never even read the evidence which...

United Kingdom on Jul 11, 2022

D. Harley: Very comprehensive and well researched exposition on why many species of fish are really quite intelligent and sophisticated in behaviour, learning, tool use, young rearing etc. Full of surprises. A little bit preachy at the end, but none the worse for that.

United Kingdom on Mar 15, 2022

Hopeful: This book is a carefully reasoned and well documented presentation of the remarkable capabilities of fish and the immense suffering and destruction we allow to be inflicted on these sentient creatures. Our environment and our world is paying the price.

Once you learn about the remarkable abilities of fish, you realize they have many of the same characteristics as your favorite pet. They "are individuals with minds and memories, able to plan, capable of recognizing others, equipped with instincts and able to learn from experience." Some have culture and virtue. "They are not just things, but beings. A fish is an individual with a personality and relationships. A fish can plan and learn, perceive and innovate, soothe and scheme, experience moments of pleasure, fear, playfulness, pain, and possibly joy." The author provides scientific studies to convince the reader of all of these assertions.

But fish have an enemy. That enemy is our thoughtless habit of eating fish flesh while oblivious to the immensely destructive consequences of that choice. The out-of-control fishing industry has no concern for concepts like sustainability. It uses fail-proof techniques to catch...

United States on May 13, 2021

Thomas Crouzet: I had been wanting to read this book for a year and I had delayed my reading until this Summer because I had other readings going on, but I definitely regret not having read this book earlier. As a non biology/science interested person, I found it so interesting to discover these many facts about our underwater friends. If you don't know the first thing about marine biology, don't be afraid, this is the book you definitely have to read. It is very simple to read and all the biology and science related content is vulgarised so that anyone is able to read this book. There are a lot very interesting facts, and I have completed my reading in less than three days (I just could not stop reading at some points!). Please, don't do it like me, do not wait a year to read this book, start right away, you will not regret it!

France on Aug 22, 2020

Navi: This is the most delightfully charming work of nonfiction I have read in a long time!

I have heard on numerous occasions that fish are nothing more than “water vegetables”, lacking feelings of pain, memory, familial love and social structure. They are continuously looked upon as a distinct species separate from the rest of the animal kingdom because they do not embody features we associate with more “sentient beings”.

I used to work in a Fish and Reptile department at a pet store. I have intimate memories of fish that recognized me when I came near their tank, liked to be touched, and had specific preferences with which fish they spend their time with. At the time, I thought it was all in my head and I was giving fish more credit than they deserved by anthropomorphizing them. However, there was always a lingering doubt in the back of my mind.

This book was a luminous revelation to me. The author's sincere passion and care for the welfare and advocacy of all "fishes" (instead of grouping them all together as a singular fish, the author makes a point of using the plural form to indicate that they are a group of individual fish with different likes,...

Canada on Apr 11, 2018

birkytink: We are all guilty of thinking of fish in the plural, a picture of a slab or a net on a trawler coming to mind when the word is uttered. It is way past time for that to change, and our associated attitudes to change too. Fish are very much individuals, with internal lives and characters very much of their own. They are not the dead eyed machines that has been our perception for so long.
Balcombe sets out to gather all the most up to date information on the senses of fish, how fish feel, from stress to joy,their ability to plan and use tools and their ability to form social contracts. This all sounds somewhat fanciful but is backed up by very solid science and exceptional observation. Fish, it would seem, know an awful lot more than we credit them with, sentient , aware, capable of scheming and social. More like us than we would care to think.
238 engrossing pages, Balcombes writing style, and his layout of the mass of information gathered, makes for a comfortable read where it is easy to absorb complex concepts. A further 32 pages of notes / bibliography gives access to any further reading that may be of interest.

United Kingdom on Apr 26, 2017

Earth lover: I am so grateful to Dr. Balcombe for this highly informative, insightful and utterly readable journey into piscene sentience. I urge anyone who cares about life on this planet, and has empathy for other living non-human creatures - fish in particular - to read it and to buy copies for your friends.

Dr. Balcombe's thoughtful collection of research and anecdotes solidly validates what we scuba divers and others who have interacted with fish have long known in our bones: that fish are fully conscious, feeling creatures - no less so than creatures who walk the land. They protect their nests, are often loyal to their mates, recognize members of their clan, hunt with intent, strategy and sometimes cooperation; know fear, know pleasure. No one can doubt this who has ever watched a fish cleaning station, or, who has ever experienced a grouper come up from the depths and go into a cleaning pose just for a gentle human chin scratch. They find both purpose and pleasure in touch.

We humans have determinedly objectified and commoditized fish, along with crustaceans other sea creatures. That makes more acceptable, the stunning scale and methods of our harvest and 'processing.' In...

United States on Aug 08, 2016