Tuna: A Love Story

by Richard Ellis

The author of The Book of Sharks , Imagining Atlantis , and Encyclopedia of the Sea turns his gaze to the tuna—one of the biggest, fastest, and most highly evolved marine animals and the source of some of the world’s most popular delicacies—now hovering on the brink of extinction. In recent years, the tuna’s place on our palates has come under scrutiny, as we grow increasingly aware of our own health and the health of our planet. Here, Ellis explains how a fish that was once able to thrive has become a commodity, in a book that shows how the natural world and the global economy converge on our plates.

The longest migrator of any fish species, an Atlantic northern bluefin can travel from New England to the Mediterranean, then turn around and swim back; in the Pacific, the northern bluefin can make a round-trip journey from California to Japan. The fish can weigh in at 1,500 pounds and, in an instant, pick up speed to fifty-five miles per hour.

But today the fish is the target of the insatiable sushi market, particularly in Japan, where an individual piece can go for seventy-five dollars. Ellis introduces us to the high-stakes world of “tuna ranches,” where large schools of half-grown tuna are caught in floating corrals and held in pens before being fattened, killed, gutted, frozen, and shipped to the Asian market. Once on the brink of bankruptcy, the world’s tuna ranches—in Australia, Spain, France, Italy, Greece, Turkey, and North Africa—have become multimillion-dollar enterprises. Experts warn that the fish are dying out and environmentalists lobby for stricter controls, while entire coastal ecosystems are under threat. The extinction of the tuna would mean not only the end of several species but dangerous consequences for the earth as a whole.

In the tradition of Mark Kurlansky’s Cod , John Cole’s Striper , John Hersey’s Blues —and of course, Ellis’s own Great White Shark —this book will forever change the way we think about fish and fishing.

Genres: Science, Animals, Nonfiction, Food, Environment, Ecology, Conservation

352 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2008

About the author

Richard Ellis is a celebrated authority on marine biology and America’s foremost marine life artist whose work has been exhibited worldwide. His nine books include The Search for the Giant Squid (a Publishers Weekly 1998 Best Book of the Year), Great White Shark, Encyclopedia of the Sea, Men and Whales, Monsters of the Sea, Deep Atlantic The Book of Whales, and Imagining Atlantis.

Reviews

[Mitchell Friedman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting but repetitive. Not enough true substance. Lots of quoting and lots of the same exact story or the same exact fact just repeated in a slightly different manner. And yet there was pretty good coverage of the subject - especially around Tuna as a fish and Tuna ranching. I would have preferred more details in almost all areas. I would have liked to have seen even more technical details on the Tuna species themselves. Definitely not up to the level of say Cod: A Biography of the Fish that Changed the World .

[Paul Hart · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little repetitive at times. Well researched but constant quoting can take away from the narrative. Was hoping for something a little more polemical but he puts for a pretty convincing case at the devastating state of the world's fisheries.

[Gabriela Carr · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book had a lot of fascinating nuggets of information about tuna sprinkled throughout. However, much of the writing was repetitive, self-satisfied, and boring.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

When my now adult son was three, he wanted to be a tuna for Halloween. He'd seen a Magic Schoolbus episode, I think, in which the tuna was celebrated as the astounding fish it is...a quarter ton of evolutionary perfection, a creature capable of swimming at over fifty miles and hour.

This book celebrates that great fish, and laments our greed and hubris-addled destruction of most tuna species. The book itself is well written, and engaging, with a significant caveat. As most reviewers noted, it's more than a little repetitious. The same data is presented, then presented again, then presented again, as if the book was initially written as a series of essays for different publications. I started skimming, but carried on to the concluding essay. As a vegetarian who grounds that choice in my faith, I found that particularly relevant.

A three point four.

[Misti · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this book. As a person who was a big fan of "Cod", I was hoping this would be a similar look into the history and forward momentum of the Tuna fishing industry. I got through the first 2 chapters and decided to put it down.

I'm from a science background, so I think this book was just too juvenile for me. Despite it's length, much of the author's prose is quoting others, repetition, and completely irrelevant facts. He even goes so far as to explain the latin species naming conventions. It ends up feeling like he's being paid by the word. This is clearly written for folks who have no biology background whatsoever, but also includes, at times, far too much detail for those who are just diving into this world.

Didn't finish. Alas.

[Fishface · Rating 3 out of 5]

Full of facts and figures about the devastation of the worldwide Tuna population, in the years since the fish were upgraded from cat-food-only or emergency rations for the poor, to the world's priciest and most-sought-after sashimi ingredient. Not a lot of evidence of love in here for these remarkable fish -- even the auhor fails to really capture the essense of why he thinks Tuna are so great, the way he did so beautifully in his book about the Giant Squid. He quotes Zane Grey, who did a better job, but that was a brief pinnacle of purple prose...

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

The content of the book is very interesting. Tuna are being over-fished worldwide, and the state of global fisheries is dire. I enjoyed the book for informing me about the issues, but there was nothing special about the writing.

[Nancy · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is about the Tuna, as you might have guessed. It is specifically about the Bluefin Tuna, the most overfished Tuna in the oceans, but he does have some bits about other tuna breeds: the Yellowfin, the Albacore, Blackfin, and Skipjack. He writes mostly about Bluefin Tuna in the scope of very large-scale fishing by nets, farms, and longlines. He explains how it is that almost all of the Bluefin end up in Japan and how Japan circumvents the laws designed to minimize the impact of overfishing on the Bluefin population. He also writes about the huge fish market in Tokyo and finally about some efforts to restore the Bluefin population by captive breeding.

I don't remember why I wanted to read this book but I can't really recommend it unless you are really into fishing or Tuna or both. As it was, I found myself skimming through sections of the book and reading bits and pieces. A lot of the material is very repetitive. A lot of the material is very repetitive. Seriously, how many times does he need to explain longline fishing or fish farming? It's also very dull and sometimes feels like a textbook. I had to keep reminding myself that there was no test at the end.
There were bits and pieces that were interesting, but those could have been boiled down to a small pamphlet.

[David Ward · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tuna: A Love Story by Richard Ellis (Alfred A. Knopf 2008) (333.5967). This is a book about one of the fastest predators in the sea. Tuna was not considered a delicacy until the Japanese created a market for it as sushi. The largest tuna were quickly fished out, the tuna population crashed, and the price of tuna skyrocketed. Richard Ellis writes about tuna farming, sport fishing for tuna, and the various species that make up the tuna family. It's a worthwhile read for one who has an interest in the concept of sustainable food harvesting. My rating: 7/10, finished 8/13/17. I purchased my HB copy from McKay's for $3.00 on 6/5/17. HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

[Aaron · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a great example of how not to write about nature. Valorizing sports fishing as ethically superior to commercial fishing and demonizing Japanese culture is not a good look, and wouldn't be even if the book was well written, not repetitive, and factually accurate, which it isn't. Perhaps it simply feels dated, like something Teddy Roosevelt might have written about the majesty of a big game safari. I worry that writing like this is going to alienate people from caring about bluefin, which have been seriously overfished.

Still there are not that many books about tuna, and this one is potentially valuable as a source of information on an important subject.

[Taran Hewitt · Rating 4 out of 5]

A compelling read which easily convinces one about the dangers that society faces if it continues to use our natural resources at this alarming rate. Whether or not Tuna will ever be successfully farmed, as opposed to ranched which still depletes the wild resource, may decide the fate of this particular eating frenzy. As other reviewers have pointed out, Mr Ellis tends to repeat himself throughout the book, but this may be for the best as it drives home some of his major points quite effectively. It is a long read but very interesting and has put me off tuna based sushi and sashimi for ever!

[Claire · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book can best be summarized as one word: repetitive. There are very interesting facts found throughout, but many of them are repeated multiple times a chapter, every chapter. The writing can be strong at times, but often the best part of reading this book was when the author included a quote from another book or paper. If you REALLY love the subject of tuna fisheries, I would maybe suggest this book. But, there are better books and places to learn about tuna than what is found within these pages.

[Deborah LaRoche · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is fascinating, yet repetitive. This book describes some interesting things over and over. The author repeats himself. It feels like you read the same amazing stories again and again, with just a few different words. (See what I did there?)

[Michelle Bizzell · Rating 2 out of 5]

Technically, this has the information I was looking for about tuna as an animal and the various moving parts of the tuna industry. 🐟 However, I found the writing dry and thought it relied on long quotations of other works too much.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Who knew tuna could be so interesting? The photos were great, as well.

[Max Maxwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

To most people, tuna isn't a fish, but rather a food item that comes in a can, disconnected from anything it might've been in life, to be mixed with celery and mayonnaise, or served on a plate with wasabi, without requirement of further contemplation. To Richard Ellis (and other biologists like him), though, the tuna is a masterpiece of evolution, the most perfectly adapted creature on earth, a wonder to behold. And it turns out that this wonder is in serious (immanent, even) danger of being wiped off the face of the planet.

In this book, Ellis's anger and passion are palpable, and you can't help but become wrought with emotion. His prose is fast-moving and he makes even relatively dry facts about tuna and the tuna fishery come to life. Prior to this, the best wide-angle tome on the destruction of sea life for man's supposed gain was Farley Mowatt's Sea of Slaughter , and the best that attempted to summarize the same using a single-species microcosm easily could've been the same author's A Whale for the Killing . Believe it or not, Ellis has put his skills to use here to outdo both in one fell swoop. He combines Mowatt's emotion with a degree of technical accuracy and academic formality (i.e. sources!) that Mowatt didn't come close to.

I would sooner recommend this to rile up the masses than I would Rachel Carson's The Silent Spring . At 300 pages, it's a relatively quick read, and it packs in just about everything you need to know. If we are to measure non-fiction books by how much information we've learned about the subject of the book when finished reading, combined by how engaging the delivery was, then A Love Story gets full marks.

[Paul Pessolano · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a great book - if you are an ichthyologist. This book will inform you of everything and anything you would want to know about Tuna. There are certain parts of this book that remind me of Herman Melville's "Moby Dick". A great story, but his laborious description of whales brought many a reader to their knees.

Why would I want to read this book?

Well, I have heard stories about how great this fish is, and how we are fishing it to extinction. The book does a very good job of telling this part of the story, It is hidden in the parts that would only interest an ichthyologist.

The Tuna, at one time, was probably the most numerous fish in the ocean. It is facing extinction mainly due to man's appitite for sushi and sashimi. The demand for it is so great in Japan that a single tune can sell for "173,600.00. This means that a plate of tuna slices would cost around $100.00.

The agency that was set up to control the overfishing for tuna has proven to be completely ineffective and has set catch limits to the point of ensuring the tuna's extinction.

Tuna farming is also a problem because they capture live tuna to be put in a farm fattening, and thereby taking breeding stock out of the ocean.

The question becomes, why would those dependent on this food and money source be willing to let it die. The answer comes in two forms, the first being the astronomical money that can be made, and second is the feeling, if I don't fish for tuna somebody else will.

There are some good parts to this book, but I have to admit that overall I found it difficult to read. I was looking for a book that zeroed more on the plight of the tuna and what we can do to preserve it. The book has that element but it is lost in the technicallity of the book. This was definately not written for the average reader.

[Jsb · Rating 3 out of 5]

For millions of years the oceans teemed with large, pelagic predatory fish. These species, most majestically the Bluefin Tuna, roamed the oceans at will - crossing the Atlantic in weeks.

Millions of years of evolution made the Bluefin Tuna the perfect fish. The Bluefin Tuna was warmblooded, could accelerate faster a Porsche, and (if it survived larvahood) live for decades.

Tragically, the king of the seas is no match for the sushi craze. Japanese, who never ate Bluefin Tuna until a hundred years ago, decided that the Bluefin's belly fat was the supreme delicacy imaginable. Decades of overfishing have reduced Bluefin numbers by 90% and driven prices up to nearly $100 an ounce.

The Bluefin are now going functionally extinct. They have disappeared from the Eastern Med and are becoming incredibly rare elsewhere. It's likely that what happened with Atlantic Cod (the total closure of the fishery, no recovery apparent) will happen to Bluefin as well.

Tuna: A Love Story is poorly written (ridiculously repititive) but overall a good book.

[Chi Dubinski · Rating 4 out of 5]

Everything you always wanted to know about tuna. Because of the popularity of tuna as a food fish, especially in Japan where it is prized as sushi, it is now on the brink of extinction. The seas have been overfished, and now "tuna ranches"--similar to cattle feed lots--have become multimillion dollar businesses.

Ellis addresses the importance of tuna to the global economy, the ocean ecosystems, and as a food and sport fish. No longer will you take the ubiquitous can of tuna for granted. Great insights into how humans are driving fish and the fishing industry into extinction.

[Yi-hsin Lin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book contains a lot of useful information. The major topics regarding bluefin tuna are reasonably addressed; namely, the life cycle and distribution of the fish, the history of the tuna fisheries, the effect of the Japanese sashimi market, current health concerns, and its current conservation status.

Unfortunately the book is unevenly edited and poorly organized. Ellis circles back to the same themes over and over again, sometimes even telling the same stories in different chapters. This makes for rather tedious reading and is the main reason the book is only getting three stars.

[Nick Forret (what_a_novel_idea) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the research the author did writing this book. I felt I learned a lot about a creature I knew very little of and enjoyed the history and passion he portrayed in his writing. The only reason I didn't give a better rating had to do with how repetitive it was. Despite my enjoyment of the book, there were a lot of times I found myself struggling to push through facts that were repeated, sometimes across several chapters. Despite that, I'd still recommend it to anyone who is a patient reader and wants to know more about this all too amazing animal.

[Caroline · Rating 4 out of 5]

Non-fiction but read like an engaging PBS special. Pretty disheartening to learn about how this blue fin tuna is almost extinct because of human's unwillingness to learn how to share and care for the world. When did the morals we learned in Preschool become obsolete?

If you have to eat sushi, learn about what you are eating and where it is coming from. Make informed decisions. Don't be a Goofus when it comes to the environment and the world. Be a Gallant!

[Emily]

@ Weber.
I heard an interview on NPR with the author. He was soooooo totally excited about tuna that he got me totally enthused too!

Did you know that in 40 degree water a tuna can raise it's own body temp to 80 degrees? That is remarkable! When I was little my mom always made me wear my coat. I don't know why, but wearing a coat when it was 20 degrees outside was SO super embarrassing. I guess tuna children don't have to have that same fight with their tuna mothers.

[Ryan · Rating 1 out of 5]

One of the worst-written non-fiction books I've read, entire sections are repeated or read like Wikipedia entries. The biggest problem, though, is that the author's POV is often obscured, contradictory, or entirely absent. Without a thesis t0 tie everything together (other than casting the Japanese as unequivocal villains without acknowledging the groups within Japan fighting for conservation and management), this just reads like a stack of hastily thrown-together information.

[Kenno82 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ellis' description of tuna farming was eye-opening, as was the state of the bluefin tuna fishery. One has to wonder just how long the fishery can be sustained while the japanese market for a-grade sashimi pays a small fortune for each fish? Unfortunately, the book was full of repetition, which made it a tiresome read at times.

[Bhall3 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very engaging book on the plight of the tuna. I had the opportunity to hear Mr Ellis speak the other day and he was adamant about not eating tuna at all any more..not that he doesn't love to eat it, but due to the dangerously high mercury content of the fish.

[Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was shocked to learn how overfished the Bluefin tuna is, and the very real danger to the world's future fish supply. However, the book is full of mind-numbing statistics, which makes it a difficult book for me to appreciate.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

A must read for tuna lovers and anyone interested in or concerned for the worlds oceans and ocean life - also talks about the worlds tuna fisheries from a business standpoint. Very interesting and informative, written for the lay-person.

[Renee]

Just heard a half hour interview with the author. This seems like a book for anyone who like the ocean, fish, sushi, etc. Can't wait to pick it up.

[Christopher Intagliata · Rating 4 out of 5]

another episode of the strange stories behind our food. Bluefin tuna farms, tokyo fish markets, tuna cowboys...it's all here. Did a segment with Ellis on Science Friday back in September.