Who are your favourite fishbook writers?

[GaryE26 24]

We end up discussing William T Innes a lot here, and he was a superlative writer about fish. Aquarium books are being produced again, though they are expensive (like vinyl lps). A lot of them are translations or nowhere near the writing style of Innes, but the info inside can be great. So if we step back from the world of influencers and youtubers, what aquarium authors are interesting or important to people here who like books?

I start with Innes. He and Baensch are up there. I'll add Paul V. Loiselle, Anton Lamboj, Horst Linke and W. Staeck, Oliver Lucanus, and Wayne Leibel, though Wayne was a magazine guy. Christian Cauvet has done some great killie stuff, in French. From when I was a kid, Herbert Axelrod was an eye opener.

 

[Back in the fold19 5]

All those you mention are great authors , although I am unfamiliar with the French writers , and I always loved reading Wayne Leibel . The self published author Ed Warner is a favorite and it may surprise you to know that I have some Barrons books written by a Gary Something . His last name escapes me right now .

 

[Rusty_Shackleford64 180]

Dr. Loiselle and Dr. Leibel and Ad Konigs.
It's sad that's all I can think of at the moment.

 

[Tomsfish23 23]

Andrew Soh has good info on discus.
His book Discus the Naked Truth has a ton of info on discus and genetic info for breeding swordtails ironically enough.
Good info on disease also in his second book of the set Discus Problems and Solutions.
Big /huge fan of the Baensch/Mergus atlas by Uwe Romer. Lucky enough to have scored a new Cichlid Atlas volume 1,2,3...
Volume 1 of them is rare and basically only available in German due to a warehouse fire that destroyed all English printed editions.
I got English~!

 

[MattW65 181]

Marcus Pfister. Writer of the legendary book The Rainbow Fish.
The only fish-related book I've read that I can remember to be honest. Well, I was 5-6 years old at the time.

 

[Innesfan61]

I'd add Sterba to the list, though I don't know how much credit should go to the translator. I also have some vintage books by the British duo, Hervey and Hems, from whom I learned a lot and enjoyed even more.

 

[GaryE26 24]

I was unaware of Hervey and Hems, and see a few titles on AbeBooks. Is there one you'd suggest?

I'm always curious about the older writers as with less technology, they often present ideas that you can use when things go awry. Things are basic, and to the point.

I'm reading 1984 killifish articles today, and I've been struck by how much we've learned since about the biology since, but at also how directly scientific and respectful of readers these texts are. The writers know they don't know everything but are in this together with their readers. No one seems to pull punches. I was running around very alive as a fishkeeper back then, but not as a killie person yet. I had seen them and wanted to try some, but hadn't been able to purchase any. I had to join a fish club for that.

The 19th edition of Innes I have has a brightly coloured cover - lots of yellow. I'll find a copy of the green one, to see it as an object of art. The info inside could be found in an e-book, but I am a person of physical books.

My great frustration with the AKA is that unlike other cubs, they aren't digitizing their back issues. It would be a time consuming task, but could be accomplished with time and a little love. One individual is holding it up as he has issues with copyright, and the pages of those journals are becoming brittle and yellowing. They weren't printed to last.

 

[TwoTankAmin54]

I do not have a lot of fish books. One of my first was the Baensch Atlas (hardcover). Most of the fish I got in the first few years in the hobby I picked out of that book. I also got a few smaller ooks over the years. Earlt on the were not by anybody very well known and were pretty basic:: Community Fishes by Dick Mills, and the Aquarium Success book Catfishes by Lee Finley (a better known name).

I also have a copy of The 101 Best Freshwater Nano Species which i have signed by both authors- Mark Denaro and rachel O'Leary. I have the Back to Nature Guide to L-Catfishes by Ingo Seidel whom I have met and talked with on a few occasions. There is a funny story re this. I wanted to have him sign the book. But, every time I went to an event where he would be and where I was also selling, I would forget to bring the book. At the second Catfish Convention I bumped into Ingo in the lobby and said hello and then confessed I had forgotten to bring the book again. He replied that this was awful since he had flown all the way over just so he could sign it. We had a good laugh and to this day the book has not been signed. His book is quite informative if you are a pleco nut.

The most unique and prized book I have was a gift from Jools of PlanetCatfish, It is a unique book because it is in both English and German. Everything on the left hand page on English and then the right hand page is the same info in German. The pictures wroks for both languages and are on both the laft and right pages. This book was printed in limited numbers and as far as I know difficult to find. The book is Loricaiids of the Miffle Rop Xingu/Loricariiden des mittkeren Rio Xinguu authored by authored by Mauricio Camargo, Heriberto Gimênes Junior, Leandro Melo de Sousa and Lúcia Rapp Py-Daniel. The second edition hsd this added: by Christian Cramer, Daniel Konn-Vetterlein, and Andreas Tanke.

What makes this such a great book is that for every species they cover there is a map of where they are found and then a full color picture of a typical section of the river where the fish are found. It is one of my more prized fish related positions along with my river rock from the Big Bend of the Xingu. The book was published in 2013 and has been out of print for many years now.

(edited for typos)

 

[Innesfan61]

I was unaware of Hervey and Hems, and see a few titles on AbeBooks. Is there one you'd suggest?

I'm always curious about the older writers as with less technology, they often present ideas that you can use when things go awry. Things are basic, and to the point.

The best one, IMO, is likely on a subject of not much interest to most here, goldfish. Their 1948 volume, THE GOLDFISH, is not only an invaluable practical guide but includes the best history of the domestication and development of goldfish I've ever read. Scholarly level detail but entirely engaging. Given that the goldfish was the gateway species to our hobby it basically serves as a genesis story for the evolution of this endeavor of ours. The subtitle provides a good idea of the uniqueness of this volume. As with Innes, there are modern recapitulations of the book, but the 1948 volume towers above them.

 

[emeraldking45 96]

Who are your favourite fishbook writers?​

Well, you already said so: William T Innes . But also Michael Kempkes (Germany) and Ronan Boutot (France). These last ones I know personally as well. Both are just like me, livebearer fans. Wild and breeding forms of guppies are their expertise. Both had also some fish from me. And I some of theirs.

 

[Innesfan61]

The 19th edition of Innes I have has a brightly coloured cover - lots of yellow. I'll find a copy of the green one, to see it as an object of art. The info inside could be found in an e-book, but I am a person of physical books.

The physical qualities of the book are, after the brilliant writing, part of its great joy. i.e. It's heavy for its size due to the quality of the paper and binding.

Here are the 20 Innes Publishing editions. Ignore the asterisks. That's a note to me that serves as a quick reference that I own that edition so If something comes up for sale that I might want I don't have to go to the shelf, pull down volumes and check indicia pages to see if I already own it.

Innes Editions

*1935 May 1st edition

*1935 December 2nd edition

*1938 3rd edition

*1942 4th edition

*1944 5th edition

*1945 6th edition

*1946 7th edition

*1947. 8th edition

1948. 9th edition

*1949.10th edition

1950. 11th edition

*1951 January -- 12th edition

*1951 July -- 13th edition

1952 14th edition

1953 January – 15th edition

*1953 July-- 16th edition

1954 17th edition

1955. 18th edition

*1956 19th edition

*1956 19th revised