What do you think?
Rate this book
Myth and Manhunter: The Story of the Shark
extremely rare,very good condition
223 pages, Hardcover
Published January 1, 1962
2 people are currently reading
197 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
December 24, 2007
Oh, Webster, why did you not live long enough to write more of this delightful book? To write more, in general? The world lost a great writer when you died.
Myth and Maneater is probably one of the first books to describes sharks as something other than a killing machine. With a mixture of attack tales, highlights of the shark species who actually pose a threat to humanity and extensive chapters on the shark in general (whatever information was achieved by the early 60s, that is) and of how to avoid shark attacks while pressing the issues of what wonderful animals sharks are and how their extinction would be humanity's and the planet's loos, Webster does his favorite animal a great favor.
Written with the unique flamboyant, humorist style that makes me love Webster so much, it's a great read even if you're not big on biology, sharks or animals in general.
Myth and Maneater is probably one of the first books to describes sharks as something other than a killing machine. With a mixture of attack tales, highlights of the shark species who actually pose a threat to humanity and extensive chapters on the shark in general (whatever information was achieved by the early 60s, that is) and of how to avoid shark attacks while pressing the issues of what wonderful animals sharks are and how their extinction would be humanity's and the planet's loos, Webster does his favorite animal a great favor.
Written with the unique flamboyant, humorist style that makes me love Webster so much, it's a great read even if you're not big on biology, sharks or animals in general.
June 28, 2011
Another one of dad's books that I pored over as a kid, obsessed with sharks as I was. Still remember the writing off the back cover about the author, who disappeared after setting out to sea in an 18 foot skiff. "One oar and the tiller were missing...and so was Dave."
January 23, 2023
The first and most important thing to know about this book is that it was written decades ago. Much of the information quoted within is dated, almost to the point where it is better to encounter "Myth and the Maneater" as a kind of curious nonfiction rather than as a way to learn about sharks. It is a snapshot of how a clever person who cared deeply about the sea and also humanity set out to write as comprehensive a *popularly-accessible* account of sharks and the mythology surrounding them as possible. This isn't The Golden Bough for sharks — it's something else entirely.
I greatly enjoyed it. It's accessible and of interest to anyone living close to a place frequented by sharks. Many little nuggets about sharks and their habits unavailable on Wikipedia can be gleaned from the text, such as what the Long Island Sound looked like as a breeding ground decades before this was written (decades ago). A vision of how things were, and how, perhaps, they might be again.
Of note: written by David Webster of Band of Brothers fame, who was lost at sea shortly after the book was published! First edition paperbacks can be found for $50-60 online. Worth it!
I greatly enjoyed it. It's accessible and of interest to anyone living close to a place frequented by sharks. Many little nuggets about sharks and their habits unavailable on Wikipedia can be gleaned from the text, such as what the Long Island Sound looked like as a breeding ground decades before this was written (decades ago). A vision of how things were, and how, perhaps, they might be again.
Of note: written by David Webster of Band of Brothers fame, who was lost at sea shortly after the book was published! First edition paperbacks can be found for $50-60 online. Worth it!
October 21, 2013
This book was nowhere near as sensationalist as the cover makes it seem. Instead it's a very readable collection of scientific fact and anecdote about many types of shark. There was a strangely large amount on the sport and business of fishing/hunting sharks, which seems odd now but I guess was normal for the time. Of course the most compelling were the stories of shark attacks, as well as advice on how to prevent or deal with attacks if they happen.
I found reading it a little eerie, for the fact that the author had died. I can't really rationalise this, as many of the books I read have deceased authors. I think in part it was because in a non-fiction book like this, the authorial voice is much stronger than in a novel, and in part because of the manner of his death - shark attacks are always just a little creepy.
I found reading it a little eerie, for the fact that the author had died. I can't really rationalise this, as many of the books I read have deceased authors. I think in part it was because in a non-fiction book like this, the authorial voice is much stronger than in a novel, and in part because of the manner of his death - shark attacks are always just a little creepy.
October 25, 2017
Excellent
April 27, 2021
INTRIGUING AND CHILLING STORIES OF THE GREAT BEASTS OF THE SEA!
March 2, 2023
Great book yes dated i got it after reading his book about parachute inf David is featured in the TV series Band of Brother story about easy company that he served with in ww2
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews