Water and Light: A Diver's Journey to a Coral Reef

by Stephen Harrigan

Overview

This evocative account of the months Stephen Harrigan spent diving on the coral reefs off Grand Turk Island in the Caribbean was originally published by Houghton Mifflin in 1992.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780292731202
Publisher:	University of Texas Press
Publication date:	05/01/1999
Series:	Southwestern Writers Collection Series, Wittliff Collections at Texas State University
Edition description:	REPRINT
Pages:	287
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.25(h) x 0.75(d)

About the Author

Harrigan is a former senior editor of Texas Monthly magazine who now writes full-time from his home in Austin, Texas.

Table of Contents

• 1. My Underwater Self
• 2. Dry Dock
• 3. Harmonium Point
• 4. Trees of Stone
• 5. Tierra
• 6. Eye to Eye
• 7. The Pain of Water
• 8. The Dead Whale
• 9. Algal Ridge
• 10. Faceless
• 11. Lobster Rock
• 12. Underwater Nights
• 13. Lord Face of Water
• 14. Homesick Turtles
• 15. Wandering
• 16. The Green Mirror
• 17. Prospects
• 18. The Burning Reef
• For Further Reading
• Acknowledgments
• Index

Editorial Reviews

Harrigan ...captures the peacefulness of being rocked by salty currents, the massive beauty of the reefs, the exhilaration of the sport, and the mental scramble to retain fast-fading memories of sights almost unimaginable on land. Fellow divers will relish his camaraderie, while those who prefer staying topside will feel as though they've taken the plunge themselves.

Booklist

Moving, intelligent and, in the best sense, literary.... Stephen Harrigan is anchored in reality; he knows that the environment he's describing is in serious jeopardy. At the same time, he has made this book sparkle with his remarkable ability to discuss the metaphysical and spiritual aspects of underwater exploration without ever sounding saccharine or murky.

New York Times Book Review

[Harrigan] tells us about the people who live on Grand Turk, or come there on business, and he is given to reflecting on the subtleties of the underwater experience, but his real virtue as a writer is his ability to convey, in precise, lucid, prose, the marvels of the sea bottom.

New Yorker

[Harrigan] tells us about the people who live on Grand Turk, or come there on business, and he is given to reflecting on the subtleties of the underwater experience, but his real virtue as a writer is his ability to convey, in precise, lucid, prose, the marvels of the sea bottom.-- "New Yorker"

Harrigan ...captures the peacefulness of being rocked by salty currents, the massive beauty of the reefs, the exhilaration of the sport, and the mental scramble to retain fast-fading memories of sights almost unimaginable on land. Fellow divers will relish his camaraderie, while those who prefer staying topside will feel as though they've taken the plunge themselves.-- "Booklist"

Moving, intelligent and, in the best sense, literary.... Stephen Harrigan is anchored in reality; he knows that the environment he's describing is in serious jeopardy. At the same time, he has made this book sparkle with his remarkable ability to discuss the metaphysical and spiritual aspects of underwater exploration without ever sounding saccharine or murky.-- "New York Times Book Review"

From the Publisher

"Harrigan ...captures the peacefulness of being rocked by salty currents, the massive beauty of the reefs, the exhilaration of the sport, and the mental scramble to retain fast-fading memories of sights almost unimaginable on land. Fellow divers will relish his camaraderie, while those who prefer staying topside will feel as though they've taken the plunge themselves."

Booklist

"[Harrigan] tells us about the people who live on Grand Turk, or come there on business, and he is given to reflecting on the subtleties of the underwater experience, but his real virtue as a writer is his ability to convey, in precise, lucid, prose, the marvels of the sea bottom."

New Yorker

A graceful writer shares his three months of diving experiences off Grand Turk Island in the Caribbean. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Booknews