Jacques Cousteau: A Life Under the Sea (Sterling Biographies Series)

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Overview

Kids will savor this fascinating trip into the life and undersea world of pioneering oceanographer Jacques Cousteau. In his quest to show off the beauty found below the waves, Cousteau dedicated himself to developing new diving technology, inventing innovative ways to photograph underwater life, and traveling the globe to explore different bodies of water. His films, including The Academy Award(R)-winning The Silent World, opened people’s eyes to a formerly unknown and spectacular marine universe. Cousteau did ...
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More About This Book

Overview

Kids will savor this fascinating trip into the life and undersea world of pioneering oceanographer Jacques Cousteau. In his quest to show off the beauty found below the waves, Cousteau dedicated himself to developing new diving technology, inventing innovative ways to photograph underwater life, and traveling the globe to explore different bodies of water. His films, including The Academy Award(R)-winning The Silent World, opened people’s eyes to a formerly unknown and spectacular marine universe. Cousteau did more than anyone to enlighten us to the stunning complexity of the oceans’ ecology, and the importance of preserving it. His message resonates more than ever today. With this biography, young readers will see how Cousteau’s mission began, and follow his thrilling, sometimes dangerous adventures into the deep.
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Editorial Reviews

Children's Literature - Judy Crowder
Cousteau, a patriarch in the field of marine exploration, seemed larger than life. He was the reason many children wanted to grow up to be marine biologists. How can a biography encapsulate his life in a format that young adult readers will enjoy reading? Olmstead does a very good job of managing this challenge. She includes the well-known facts: Cousteau invented the aqualung, a device that enabled a diver to breathe underwater; he helped develop early submersibles; he outfitted a wooden-hulled boat that he named the Calypso and made it his traveling "home." The book also includes lesser-known gems about Cousteau's life: poor health caused him to have a solitary childhood, in which he "adventured" in books by James Fenimore Cooper and Jules Verne; his wife Simone sold her furs and family jewels to pay for the Calypso's alterations; he won the French Legion Medal of Honor for working with the French Resistance during World War II; his television program, "The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau," premiered in January 1968 and changed television history. Even though this is a biography, the book does not stop at Cousteau. It is loaded with boxed asides about everything from Jules Verne to coral reefs to ecosystem to ecotourism and so on. This book, part of the "Sterling Biographies" series also features a plethora of illustrations, a glossary, a bibliography, source notes, a timeline, and an index. All in all, this is a fine biography. However, its small format fails to do the book justice since the print is quite small and the notes, index, and additional material is barely readable. Reviewer: Judy Crowder
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Product Details

  • ISBN-13: 9781402744402
  • Publisher: Sterling
  • Publication date: 8/5/2008
  • Series: Sterling Biographies Series
  • Pages: 128
  • Sales rank: 131,592
  • Age range: 10 - 12 Years

Table of Contents


Introduction: A Life Under the Water     1
The Birth of an Explorer     2
Struggles and Success     14
In Occupied France     24
Beneath the Waves     32
Unexpected Dangers     39
The Calypso     50
The Silent World Below     62
The Conshelf Experiments     74
A Resident of the Sea     84
The Odyssey Continues     98
The Final Journey Home     105
Glossary     118
Bibliography     118
Source Notes     120
Image Credits     122
About the Author     122
Index     123
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Sort by: Showing 1 Customer Review

  • Anonymous

    Posted March 30, 2009

    Great for children and adults alike

    This was a great book! My child did not know who Jacques cousteau was but with a little help decided to get the book for a biography report. The reading was challenging but not too difficult. Some french names which we did the best we could with. My child was drawn in and could not put the book down. Great information. The pictures were wonderful and the story inspiring. It had everything from WWII, to underwater dangers to the family man he was. There is just one small issue. I think the portion of the book, although small regarding Cousteau's affair with another woman and the existance of another family could be left out of type of book geared at kids. It is just not necessary and left me with a little unexpecting explaining I was not wanting to do with a 4th grader. Other than that... wonderful story. I also recommend getting/ renting the old Cousteau films by National Geographics to compliment the reading...

    1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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