The Devil's Cormorant

September 1, 2013

King (Maritime Studies Program, Williams Coll. & Mystic Seaport; Lobster) demonstrates his multidimensional expertise on matters relating to the sea in this excellent exploration of the world of cormorants. That these seabirds (40 species of them) are found worldwide is key to the book's organization, as each chapter moves to another part of the globe, with regular returns to various U.S. maritime locations. Cormorants have been widely reviled for centuries because, among other factors, they present competition to anglers and commercial fisherman (in the Far East, fishermen have harnessed cormorants' skills for their own fishing). King explains cormorants' habits, their biology, and their place in human history, folklore, and literature, including human-bird conflicts across the centuries. He works such figures as Aristotle, John Milton (in Paradise Lost, Satan disguise himself as a cormorant), Captain James Cook, Charles Darwin, and Kurt Vonnegut into his absorbing narrative. VERDICT A work that is thorough and authoritative as well as charming, this title is highly recommended for those interested in the historical, cultural, and literary relationship between humans and the natural world.--Henry T. Armistead, formerly with Free Lib. of Philadelphia

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