Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Not complete, 10 Aug 2006
Again I agree with other coments. I got this book as a Xmas present becos I asked for it. Thought it would have Cyprus and Malta wrecks in it. This aint a guide to the Med its more like a guide to a few wrecks off the writers back door.Details are not good enough for serious diveing.
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21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Wrong Title., 5 Sep 2001
I purchased this book prior to embarking on various Mediterranean assignments in the hope of finding some ready-made research material - perhaps even some new information, on a number of shipwrecks. Sadly, and not for the first time with this particular publisher, I was immediately disappointed with the book simply because the content completely fails to match the title. Surely, any book describing itself as a "Diving Guide to Mediterranean Wrecks" should include a reasonably widespread selection of shipwrecks from around the various diving destinations within the Mediterranean Sea? Unfortunately this book confines itself to a relatively confined area between Marseilles and Sicily.
32 dive-sites are covered in varying degrees of thoroughness with 8 being aircraft. 13 wrecks are taken from between Marseilles and Cannes, 3 from Corsica, 10 from along the west coast of Italy, 4 from Sardinia and finally 2 from the Straits of Messina. Prospective buyers should be aware, therefore, that all other established "wreck-diving destinations" from Gibraltar to Cyprus are not covered at all. That includes 3 of the world's finest shipwrecks; Polynésien, Rosslyn and Zenobia - all of which receive no mention whatsoever.
As far as the content is concerned, the wrecks chosen caused me much consternation. Certainly, the Liban, Rubis, Mohawk Deer and Genova are all substantial shipwrecks where the individual narrative reveals some knowledge of each vessel. Elsewhere, however, the Tantine is nothing more than part of the decks of a small tugboat - and definitely not worth a visit to 48m, the Antheor Barges are remnants of small river craft and the Barge of Sestri is yet another Barge. These are hardly "shipwrecks" and I got the impression that they (and others) were included in order to make up numbers and pad out the book.
Of the 8 aircraft, there is a half Junkers JU 88 at a depth of 50-53m, a badly damaged Messerschmitt BF 109 at 45m, some three quarters of another small aircraft at 32m, what appears to be nothing more than an aircraft wing at 44m and finally a Vought F4U Corsair at 4m (Yes 12 feet!) - all of which are of little value to the average diver and should never have been included.
As far as information goes, there are far too many instances where "Date of Construction Unknown" and "Date of Sinking Unknown" are printed next to the wreck in question - which clearly reveals a complete lack of research into the subject matter of a book which was never ready for publication.
This series of books are produced by White Star Publishing of Italy and then purchased as a ready made product by other publishers and I reserve my final comments for the translation from the original Italian - which does become very tiresome indeed. An example of what I mean is as follows (and I quote directly from page 91); "The fuselage is thus a long empty tunnel rendered interesting by the encrustations of sponges, bryozoa, sea-squirts and annelids which enliven the monochrome aluminium panelling." As I have said before, much is lost in any literal translation from one language to another and White Star Publishing are in desperate need of a competent translator.
On the "Up" side, many of the photographs are quite excellent - and for this the book keeps one star, four stars lost, however, for misleading title, lack of research, translation, and choice of sites.
NM
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