Reefs & Rainforest

Turn to any color plate in this book and prepare to have your breath taken away by large, rich, lush images of the underwater life of Borneo's reefs contrasted with the flora and fauna of its rain forests, all photographed by dentist/nature photographer Kaufman. So that the photos could stand out as they do, captions were relegated to a separate section called "Photographer's Notes." Brief text by Bornean officials adequately describes the biodiversity of the two ecosystems, while a final segment titled "Regarding Conservation" considers the threat faced by these same systems. The highlight of this book, however, is the vibrant photography. For larger public library natural history and photography collections. [A portion of the proceeds from the sale of this book will be donated to World Wildlife Fund Malaysia.-Ed.]

Raymond Hamel, Wisconsin Regional Primate Research Ctr. Lib., Madison (from Library Journal)

The reefs and rain forests of Borneo are considered to be the oldest on the planet, with the reefs declared by Jacques Cousteau to be an untouched piece of art, and the rain forests containing more species per square quarter mile than exist in all North American forests combined. Photographer Kaufman, a surgeon by trade, has been traveling to Borneo for more than seven years, and the results of his work are brilliantly displayed in this new coffee-table book. Three sections on reefs, rain forests, and conservation are introduced with essays by Malaysian experts in the field. Kaufman's images follow, and they are stunning. The luminous colors of the reef denizens are beautifully set off by black borders, and groupings of photos in the same color range are an effective touch. Technical notes provide information about cameras, film, and shutter speeds, and photographer's notes impart some of the natural history of the species depicted. Although the price may make this an optional purchase, better images of rare species would be difficult to find anywhere else.

Nancy Bent