Salmon - A Fish, the Earth, and the History of Their Common Fate

In what he says is the most important piece of environmental writing in his long and award-winning career, Mark Kurlansky, best-selling author of SALT and COD, THE BIG OYSTER, 1968, and MILK, among many others, employs his signature multi-century storytelling and compelling attention to detail to chronicle the harrowing yet awe-inspiring life cycle of salmon.
During his research Kurlansky traveled widely and observed salmon and those who both pursue and protect them in the Pacific and the Atlantic, in Ireland, Norway, Iceland, Japan, and even the robust but not as frequently visited Kamchatka Peninsula. This world tour reveals an eras-long history of man's misdirected attempts to manipulate salmon and its environments for his own benefit and gain, whether for entertainment or to harvest food.

In addition, Kurlansky's research shows that all over the world these fish, uniquely connected to both marine and terrestrial ecology as well as fresh and salt water, are a natural barometer for the health of the planet. He documents that for centuries man's greatest assaults on nature, from overfishing to dams, from hatcheries to fish farms, from industrial pollution to the ravages of climate change, are evidenced in the sensitive life cycle of salmon.

With stunning historical and contemporary photographs and illustrations throughout, Kurlansky's insightful conclusion is that the only way to save salmon is to save the planet and, at the same time, the only way to save the planet is to save the mighty, heroic salmon.

List of contents

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Prologue: A Tale of Two Fisheries

PART ONE: The Hero

CHAPTER ONE: A Family Matter
CHAPTER TWO: A Hero’s Life
PART TWO: A Human Problem
CHAPTER THREE: The Original Salmon
CHAPTER FOUR: Old Ways in the New Land
CHAPTER FIVE: A Golden Fish Arrives in the EastC
CHAPTER SIX: When It Was Working
CHAPTER SEVEN: The White Man Comes
CHAPTER EIGHT: Nowhere to Run
PART THREE: The Problem With Solutions
CHAPTER NINE: Why Not Make More?
CHAPTER TEN: Sea Cattle
CHAPTER ELEVE: The Release
PART FOUR: The Dangerous Future
CHAPTER TWELVE: Elegy for the Atlantic
CHAPTER THIRTEEN: The Dismantling of Myths
CHAPTER FOURTEEN: The Ballad of the Pacific
CHAPTER FIFTEEN: The Golden Fish Departs
EPILOGUE :It Concerns Us
Acknowledgments
Notes
Bibliography
Index

About the author

Mark Kurlansky is the New York Times bestselling author of Havana, Cod, Salt, Paper, The Basque History of the World, 1968, and The Big Oyster, among other titles. He has received the Dayton Literary Peace Prize, Bon Appetit's Food Writer of the Year Award, the James Beard Award, and the Glenfiddich Award. His articles have appeared in a wide variety of newspapers and magazines, including The International Herald Tribune, The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Miami Herald, The Chicago Tribune, The Los Angeles Times, Time Magazine, Partisan Review, Harper¿s, The New York Times Sunday Magazine, Audubon Magazine, Food & Wine, Gourmet, Bon Appetit, and Parade. He lives in New York City. www.markkurlansky.com

Summary

"Henry David Thoreau wrote, 'Who hears the fishes when they cry?' Maybe we need to go down to the river bank and try to listen."

In what he says is the most important piece of environmental writing in his long and award-winning career, Mark Kurlansky, best-selling author of Salt and Cod, The Big Oyster, 1968, and Milk, among many others, employs his signature multi-century storytelling and compelling attention to detail to chronicle the harrowing yet awe-inspiring life cycle of salmon.

During his research Kurlansky traveled widely and observed salmon and those who both pursue and protect them in the Pacific and the Atlantic, in Ireland, Norway, Iceland, Japan, and even the robust but not as frequently visited Kamchatka Peninsula. This world tour reveals an eras-long history of man’s misdirected attempts to manipulate salmon and its environments for his own benefit and gain, whether for entertainment or to harvest food.

In addition, Kurlansky’s research shows that all over the world these fish, uniquely connected to both marine and terrestrial ecology as well as fresh and salt water, are a natural barometer for the health of the planet. He documents that for centuries man’s greatest assaults on nature, from overfishing to dams, from hatcheries to fish farms, from industrial pollution to the ravages of climate change, are evidenced in the sensitive life cycle of salmon.

With stunning historical and contemporary photographs and illustrations throughout, Kurlansky’s insightful conclusion is that the only way to save salmon is to save the planet and, at the same time, the only way to save the planet is to save the mighty, heroic salmon.

Foreword

We have a robust marketing plan for this book:

Galleys will be available

Endorsements by influencers such as Michael Pollan, Alice Waters, James Prosek, Mark Bittman, E.O. Wilson, Robert Redford, etc.

Robust author tour -- at least 12 cities -- Patagonia stores, independent bookstores, natural history museums and aquariums, environmental organizations

Featured in at least 2 Patagonia catalogs

Social promotion through Patagonia (corporate), Patagonia Books, and Patagonia Provisions

Promote at fishing trade shows, such as iCast

Promote to environmental orgs such as World Trout

Submit to college/university First Reads programs

Submit to community reads programs

Mailing to college and university professors

Full pre-publication promotion

Promotion to environmental, fishing, natural history, and culinary magazines

Galleys available for reps

ARC Mailing to booksellers and librarians

submit for Premier Pick

IndieBound promotion

ARC program for Baker and Taylor

Distribute egalleys through Edelweiss or NetGalley

Galley giveaways at tradeshows

Solicit early blurbs from booksellers

Amazon Vine Program

Additional text

"Attractive enough to reside on your coffee table but small enough to fit on a shelf, the book's 448 pages are filled with more than 150 photographs and illustrations that provide additional insight into the chronicle of these fish and their interaction with man. . . . In these pages, Kurlansky puts us on notice. The time to act is now." --the Virginia Sportsman

Product details

• Authors: Mark Kurlansky, Kurlansky Mark
• Publisher: Ingram Publishers Services
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 03.03.2020
• EAN: 9781938340864
• ISBN: 978-1-938340-86-4
• No. of pages: 416
• Dimensions: 177 mm x 203 mm x 40 mm
• Weight: 1254 g
• Illustrations: full color photographs and illustrations
• Subjects: Guides > Nature; Non-fiction book > Nature, technology > Nature: general, reference works; Nature / Environmental Conservation & Protection, SPORTS & RECREATION / Fishing, NATURE / Ecosystems & Habitats / Rivers, Science / Environmental Science, Wildlife: aquatic creatures: general interest