Book Review: Shark Trouble by Peter Benchley (Audiobook)

I live about a mile from the ocean, well within walking distance. It is something I take for granted, just a fact of my everday life, but Shark Trouble has changed my view of the vast blue that crashes against the coast. Not only has Shark Trouble changed my view on the sea, but it has affected the way I view the animals in it and the impact the oceans of the world have on the Earth and all the life on this teeny blue planet. For this author, the man responsible for birthing Jaws on an already frightened and ignorant public to become such an avid shark conversationalist and advocate of educating the public on the raping of our oceans is dramatic enough to write a book about.

When authors read their own books it creates an unforgettable performance, cohesion between the performer and the work that is not always there in other circumstances. Most memorable of all was hearing Stephen King read Bag of Bones with a perfectly brilliant Maine accent that made me laugh and sent chills up my spine all at once. Because they are the characters they create and because they know the reaction that they would like to elicit from the audience authors who record their books to tape embody the story and that’s what you heard during this audiobook. Benchley’s passion and love of the ocean were not only evident, but articulate. His humor, warmth, and wonder is in every chapter of this compelling, educational, and eminently readable non-fiction book. If I wanted to learn to scuba dive before reading Shark Trouble, I want to do it even more now that I know the otherworldly quality of our ocean’s inhabitants. Benchley tells of first hand accounts of encounters with a variety of shark species, rays, and whales that highlight the utter alienness of the sea. There are plenty of horror stories of real shark encounters contained in the text, but Benchley highlights that these attacks are often the result of natural shark behavior patterns and not the menacing, man-eating shark madness that overtook the media in the summer of 2001.

If you love the ocean, if you cherish it’s many residents and want to learn more then this is a perfect read.