Squid

Martin Wallen is Professor Emeritus at Oklahoma State University. He is the author of many books, including Fox (Reaktion, 2006).

As well as providing a great summary of our scientific understanding of squids, Professor Wallen's book takes you to a different time and is a great read for anyone interested in sea monsters. The information given is highly engaging and the presentation is clear and wonderfully supported by descriptive images. The writing style is easy and relaxing to follow. The timeline at the end makes the structure of the book logical and understandable. This was the first of Martin Wallen's books I have read but it certainly won't be the last. - The Marine BiologistAn educational . . . look at squids, in reality and fiction . . . The discussions of squids’ diet (they 'prey on almost anything that does not eat them first') and their 'highly aggressive hunting behavior' are especially intriguing . . . Some fascinating passages. - Publishers WeeklyWallen brings an academic lens to the subject, tracing the deep-sea terror of kraken mythology through to the contemporary scientific understanding of the cephalopod, two perspectives brought together by an exploration of how they’re represented in art and literature . . . the book is beautifully produced with numerous full-colour illustrations . . . Some engrossing insights. - Morning StarJohn Steinbeck points out in The Log from the Sea of Cortez that “Men really need sea-monsters in their personal oceans.” Squid explores this idea by taking the reader on a recurring migration between the mesopelagic darkness of kraken mythology and the epipelagic zone of contemporary squid biology through a fascinating history of literary attempts to entwine these worlds. At first glance this book may seem like a charming Victorian cabinet of cephalopod curiosities, but it is more like a well used tackle box full of intriguing lures, hooks, and strange squid jigs – some beautiful, some ominous, and each with its own story that makes it part of an emergent whole. For anyone interested in squid and the cross-over between natural sciences and the humanities, this book will be a gem. - William Gilly, Professor of Biology, Stanford UniversityWallen dives deep into both the natural as well as the human cultural history of these fascinating mollusks, exploring how they have long filled oceanic enquiries, our imaginations, our nightmares, and our deep fat fryers. - The Well-read Naturalist