Blue Meridian

Blue Meridian chronicles Peter Matthiessen's ambitious 17-month expedition to find and photograph great white sharks in their natural habitat. The journey takes place aboard multiple vessels across vast stretches of ocean, from South Africa to South Australia and beyond. The account follows the daily challenges and rare encounters experienced by the crew, including pioneering underwater photographers and marine experts. Matthiessen documents the technical innovations required for filming these elusive predators, along with the physical and psychological demands of spending months at sea. The narrative captures detailed observations of marine life, weather patterns, and the complex logistics of mounting such an extensive oceanographic venture in the late 1960s. The book served as the written companion to the groundbreaking documentary "Blue Water, White Death." This work stands as both a maritime adventure and a meditation on humanity's relationship with one of the ocean's most feared and misunderstood creatures. Through scientific observation and personal experience, Matthiessen presents the great white shark not as a monster, but as a remarkable evolutionary success story.

Readers value Blue Meridian as a detailed chronicle of the 1969 expedition to film great white sharks. Many note its raw, honest portrayal of the challenges and tensions during filming. Readers appreciate: - First-hand accounts of early shark research - Details about filming methods and equipment - Character studies of shark researchers and crew - Historical context of shark knowledge in the 1960s Common criticisms: - Technical language can be dense - Some sections focus too much on logistics - Limited shark encounters in early chapters - Period-specific attitudes that feel dated Ratings: Goodreads: 4.1/5 (489 ratings) Amazon: 4.4/5 (41 ratings) "Takes you right onto the boat with them" - Goodreads reviewer "Important historical record but dry at times" - Amazon reviewer "The waiting and tedium comes through clearly - both good and bad" - LibraryThing review Several readers note the book pairs well with viewing Blue Water, White Death, the documentary that resulted from the expedition.

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🦈 Peter Matthiessen was a co-founder of The Paris Review literary magazine in 1953, alongside George Plimpton and Harold L. Humes. 📚 Blue Meridian was published in 1971, at a time when great white sharks were still largely misunderstood and feared, predating the release of "Jaws" by four years. 🎥 The expedition documented in the book led to the creation of the groundbreaking documentary film "Blue Water, White Death," one of the first films to show great white sharks in their natural habitat. 🏆 Matthiessen was the only author to win the National Book Award in both fiction and non-fiction categories, though Blue Meridian wasn't among these winning works. 🌊 The book's expedition marked one of the first times that specialized shark cages and underwater camera housings were used extensively for filming great whites, pioneering techniques still used by shark photographers today.