Diving for Sunken Treasure

by Jacques-Yves Cousteau, Philippe Diolé

English, French (translation)

Genres: Nonfiction, Nature, History, Adventure, France

296 pages, unknown

First published January 1, 1971

About the author

Born in 1910, was a French naval officer, explorer, ecologist, and filmmaker, who studied the sea. Although he is most famous to us from his television programmes, he also co-developed the aqua-lung, and pioneered marine conservation as a political and scientific priority.
In the Calypso, an ex-Royal Navy minesweeper, Cousteau visited the most interesting waters of the planet. During these trips he produced many books and films. He gained three Oscars for; The Silent World, The Golden Fish, and World Without Sun, as well as many other top awards including the Palme d'Or in 1956 at the Cannes Film Festival.
Cousteau liked to call himself an "oceanographic technician". He was in reality a sophisticated lover of nature who found a way of communicating complex scientific and biological concepts to ordinary people. While he was criticised at the time by some academics for failing to express science 'properly', his work permitted many people to explore the resources of the "blue continent". As an example of his influence, in 1975, folk singer John Denver composed the song "Calypso" as a tribute to Cousteau and his research ship Calypso. The song reached the number one position on the Billboard 100 charts.
Cousteau's work did a great deal to popularize knowledge of underwater biology and was featured in the long-lived documentary television series The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau which began in 1968. On January 11, 1996, the Calypso sank in Singapore harbour. Cousteau died on June 25, 1997 - his work is continued by his son Jean-Michel and his grandson Fabien, who studies sharks from a custom-built shark-shaped submarine.

Reviews

[Lesley]

this is the book that max fisher checks out of the library in the movie rushmore. i bought a copy on ebay years ago and it remains one of my most treasured (no pun intended!) possessions.

[jazlyn aisya · Rating 5 out of 5]

'All activity on land and in the sea should have as its inspiration, and as its rule of conduct, respect for man and respect for all life forms.'

Cousteau you absolute LEGEND. His romance and respect for the sea and its inhabitants perfectly balances the fervent ambitious energy his crew radiates in search for the gold buried with Nuestra Señora de la Concepción (10/10 epic name). What a bittersweet ending, yet I can't imagine I would like it any other way. The last few pages when Cousteau reflects on his relationship with the sea, chef's kiss. It's the butter and maple syrup to the pancake of this whole book, which, is really well-balanced in alternating between the history of Spain's lust for gold and Cousteau's accounts of the merriment aboard the Calypso. Gorgeous coral pictures, the iconic red beanie and blue shirt getup, tons of fish friends and slightly murderous pirate tales, what more can you ask for? To sum it up, this book INVENTED 'Maybe the real treasure was the friends we made along the way' and I loved it. 4.5/5 great accompaniment to The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, would recommend if you're trying to hit on Wes Anderson :)

[Dilara Han · Rating 5 out of 5]

Küçüklüğümde babamın Bilim ve Teknik dergisi koleksiyonu vardı. Birkaç sayısı hariç 2003’e kadar eksiksizdi. Canım sıkıldıkça bir çocuk kitabı okumak yerine, güzel kapaklı bir sayı bulur okurdum. Çoğu zaman hiçbir şey anlamazdım, bazen sadece fotoğraflara bakardım. Bulmacalarını, zeka sorularını çözmeye çalışırdım. En sevdiğim sayılardan biri de Kaptan Cousteau’nun da olduğu 90lı yıllardan kalma bir sayıydı. Denizaltının büyülü dünyası, müthiş fotoğraflar… ama maalesef sonrasında o metnin ilerisine gidip ne Cousteau hakkında başka bir okumam oldu, ne de denizin büyülü dünyasına yönelik herhangi bir araştırmam. Yıllar sonra Rushmore’da bu kitabı görünce hemen aklıma o sayı gelmiş ve bir sahaftan bulmuştum bu kitabı. Ama yine araya yıllar girdi ve henüz okuyabildim :) okuyabilme/ okumaya zaman ayırabilme yeteneğimi kaybettiğim şu son iki senede beni çok heyecanlandıran bir kitap oldu. Şimdi maalesef bizde olmayan Bilim ve Teknik koleksiyonunu anımsattı, keşke halen olsaydı. Deniz kabuklarına da meraklanmaya başladığım bu dönemde deniz canlıları iyice ilgimi çekmeye başladı. Cousteau’nun başka maceralarını da okumak dileğiyle.

[Chans · Rating 4 out of 5]

7/10

[Hannan edde · Rating 5 out of 5]

Max fisher coded

[Jimmy Cline · Rating 5 out of 5]

From what little I have read of Cousteau's explorations, and from the films of his that I have seen, Diving for Sunken Treasure seems like the perfect moral tale, exemplifying Cousteau's rather humanitarian relationship with the sea. As he is incapable of denying every single semblance of greed in his search for the treasure of the Nuestra Senora de la Concepcion, his curiosity and respect for the sea ultimately overwhelms those less admirable motives.

I enjoyed the structure of the book very much. The chapters alternate back and forth between Cousteau's rather romantic musings from his captain's log, and an impressively erudite account of 17th and 18th century Spanish maritime commerce. It's easy to find Cousteau's style romantically hyperbolic at times, but (as I usually find to be the case) it's earnest in the most sincere way, therefore difficult to not come across as endearing. Here is a rather lengthy example from the final chapter...

"From the very first, my sense of wonder at the sea has alternated with a sense of revulsion. My joys have been interlaced with pain and disappointment. For every pleasure that I have derived, I have had to scale a mountain of aversion. I was the only one who knew this; and even I refused to admit it completely to myself. My motive in seeking out new sites to explore, in diving ever deeper, in staying below ever longer, in filming, in fighting, was, certainly, the satisfaction of my curiosity about the sea, to dominate it, to conquer it. I was biologically drawn to the sea; and I knew very well that I would never succeed in possessing it totally. Every time that I manage to make a small discovery in the sea, to find a spot of beauty or a moment of ecstasy, my satisfaction is that of a man who succeeds, at least momentarily, in having his way with the woman he loves. And, as in a love affair, the story of my romance with the sea is the story of temptation, disappointments, betrayals, misunderstandings, quarrels, and rages. Underneath it all, there has always been a sense of being trapped. And today, resentment at the trap dominates my emotions; resentment, and almost hate, toward the unceasingly evasive and artful love of my life. And so, today, I will sulk. I will not dive. I will remain alone on this little ship, bitter, with accusations of infidelity running through my mind."

Lovely, isn't it? Given the myriad technical complications that Cousteau bemoans throughout this dive, it's no wonder that he writes with such unremitting conviction. He wouldn't be the sort of man that he is famous for being if he weren't so persistent. Which sort of makes him like a sisyphus of underwater exploration.

[Brian Hamacher · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have a dozen Cousteau books and have read half of them. This is the best so far. The style works well, as chapters alternate between the crew's treasure hunt and Cousteau's narrative of pirates, galleons and the Caribbean adventures of the past. A fast read, and worth it, the book reiterates that the payoff is often in the journey, not the destination.

[⚔️Kelanth⚔️ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lettura scolastica effettuata in classe, di cui ho un ricordo penoso, non tanto per il libro in se, ma proprio per la lettura forzata che mi fecero fare.

Sinceramente non sono un appassionato di avventure marine e con tutto il rispetto di Cousteau, non so perchè ancora ho questo libro.

[Nina · Rating 4 out of 5]

i will read every book that wes anderson recommended

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

An account of one particular adventure told in a distinctive Cousteau Narrative. Love it!