Reef Life: An Underwater Memoir

by Callum Roberts

A hugely affecting memoir by the world's leading coral reef scientist, revealing the thrill of diving and the vital science and story of these majestic reefs.

How did one of the world’s preeminent marine conservation scientists fall in love with coral reefs? We first meet Callum as a young student who had never been abroad, spending a summer helping to map the unknown reefs of Saudi Arabia. From that moment, when Callum first cleared his goggles, he never looked back. He went on to survey Sharm al-Sheikh, and from there he would dive into the deep in the name of research all over the world, from Australia’s imperiled Great Barrier Reef to the hardier reefs of the Caribbean.

Reef Life is filled with astonishing stories of adventure and the natural world, which are by turns lyrical and laced with a wonderful wry humor. Callum illuminates the science of our oceans and reefs and his book, combined with the stunning photographs from Alex Mustard, will also commit readers to support Callum’s goal to preserve 10 percent of the world’s oceans.

Genres: Nonfiction, Science, Nature, Memoir, Animals, Environment, Biology

368 pages, Hardcover

Published March 3, 2020

About the author

Recently named in the Times as one of the 100 most influential UK scientists, Prof Callum Roberts is an award-winning expert on Marine Conservation.

His main research interests include documenting the impacts of fishing on marine life, both historic and modern, and exploring the effectiveness of marine protected areas. For the last 10 years he has used his science background to make the case for stronger protection for marine life at both national and international levels. His award winning book, The Unnatural History of the Sea, charts the effects of 1000 years of exploitation on ocean life.

He lectures throughout the US, UK and Europe, and is frequently called on to give government briefings to the US Congress and Senate, as well as Whitehall.

Callum is a WWF UK Ambassador, trustee of Seaweb, Fauna and Flora International and Blue Marine Foundation, and advisor to Save our Seas.

Reviews

[maya venice · Rating 3 out of 5]

*3.5*

i really liked this. inspiring + very interesting reading about Callum's experiences and him growing in his life and career :) i learned so many new things (love expanding my knowledge) and it was writen in a friendly way, with hints of humor.

just some parts (especially towards the end) seemed repeated way too many times, which made me put it down more often or reread the same sentence again. also I usually skimmed over the very detailed descriptions of fish, i found it a bit too much.

[Alice · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reefs and fish!!! 😁🐠🤿🪸
Reefs and fish 😔🪦🫚⚠️

[Brad · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best science and nature travel book I've read this year.

Also deep dark wet scuba porn, if you're into that kinda thing.

[Rae · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book took me all summer (plus some) to read because it’s non-fiction and very science-y. A concept i seem to have challenges grasping. But the descriptions of coral reefs were stunning and Roberts’ personal stories made the need to save coral reefs palpable. I’m grateful to be taking a snorkel trip to our little, Caribbean island this week to see coral regeneration. Thank you, Reilly, for gifting me this book. The photographs were so gorgeous!

[Mika · Rating 5 out of 5]

This fantastic book took me a year to read, but not because it was boring; I just read in small bits amid other work. It's an exemplary piece of serious science writing framed into a memoir about a career in science. Roberts's deep concern about the fate of the world's coral reefs is compelling, but it is also wonderful that the book ends in a register of cautious optimism — and the recognition the problems are social and political, not scientific.

It was hard to read the amazing descriptions of diving during a pandemic when I haven't been underwater once, but they made me more excited about the future when we can return to diving. Excited, too, to recognize that responsible dive tourism can be one of the ways of helping save the reefs!

[Morag Forbes · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in conservation, the oceans, nature or travel. Callum Roberts is one of the worlds top marine conservationists and this book walks you through his career; education about coral reefs; and fascinating if heart breaking explanations of the decline of reefs. There are stories from all over the world from Saudi Arabia and Iran to Jamaica and the Caribbean to the Maldives and Egypt. Although it’s a book to inspire us to action to save the reefs there are stories of wonder and hope that will keep you reading.

[Jonathan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Truly excellent book. Part memoir, part summary of the great and perhaps insurmountable challenges reefs have faced over the 30-40 years of Dr. Roberts' career, this book was both informative and inspiring. If I wasn't already pursuing marine science, I would be after reading this book.

[victoria worm · Rating 2 out of 5]

very knowledgeable on his research and the topic at hand. wouldve rated it higher if it was less political (although the perspective from the middle east is very interesting)

[Chantal Lyons · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reef Life is an absorbing read, more absorbing than I would have expected - it's essentially a travelogue-by-reef, in great detail, with little focus on astounding discoveries (which my binge of pop science books has got me hooked on it seems). Sometimes the descriptions of all the different fish species becomes overwhelming but I never, ever felt bored, and I smiled at scenes such as the eel garden.

Callum Roberts occasionally strays into purple prose (a hint of Robert Macfarlane there) but there are also times where his writing is as clear, urgent and ferocious as Naomi Klein's. As Hugh Fearnly-Whittingstall says on the jacket, LISTEN TO HIM.

(The photos are gorgeous, too.)

[Alexis Lewis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anyone who has never had a desire to explore the world or be curious in any avenue of life would be seriously tested after reading this. As a marine science student I often forget the magic of the underwater world as the only underwater experience close by is heavily polluted and depleted. This brought back some of my initial wonder and it really is horrifying the concept of being comfortable without it.

[Jennifer Collins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Roberts' Reef Life is a gorgeously written account of his life spent working on and around and for coral reefs, moving from the early 1980s up to around 2017. His passion for marine life and corals is apparent on every page, and readers who've taken their own dives and snorkels to explore underwater landscapes will probably get the most out of this work and best relate to the encounters and stories shared here. That said, while the early chapters where Roberts was just getting his feet read as you might expect a memoir to, that 'memoir flavor' gets left behind for most of the book, to the extent that it feels a bit like we're reading something more akin to a localized biography of corals through one POV, or something like of an extrapolation of what a marine conservationist's career might look like. I adored reading the book because I do love marine life--it's why I picked the memoir up to begin with--but I was surprised at the balance of science to memoir, and I can see some memoir readers being more disappointed than I was.

For readers who are passionate about coral reefs or marine life or conservation, though, I'd absolutely recommend this work.

[Chani Courtney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. What an incredible life of corals through his own work and experience is written here. The descriptions of the reefs are so vivid you really feel your there. The environmental understanding, pitfalls and triumphs are well illustrated both with words and pictures. The intertwining lives and gathering of the scientists he met was fascinating. The footnotes were helpful and added to the book well. I lived in Saudi Arabia as a child and my father worked in Egypt so I related well to the chapters of the bureaucracy challenges and descriptions of the fantastic Arabian landscape and people we honest and entertaining. His love of these spectacular ecosystems was clear and someone without any scientific background could read this and understand the importance of them to our future and the pressures we are forcing upon them. Definitely one of my favourite environmental based literature I've ever read. A must for any diver or someone interested in corals.

[William Yip · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't know if it was just the Kindle edition but there were missing words, commas, and repeated words. The author frequently used purple prose and metaphors to describe the reefs and life he saw underwater and sometimes used a weird sentence structure that can be read in two different ways which made the content harder to understand and would have been avoided with the use of helper words.

That said, the author's descriptions conjured up beautiful imagery in one's imagination. The book also contained breathtaking photographs. It's sad to read that coral reefs have been badly damaged by human action and climate change and that, unless things drastically change, the situation will continue to worsen.

[Stephanie Cullen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is where I wish Goodreads had half stars- four and a half. This book was beautiful in its dreamy underwater descriptions, scientifically informative and was quite a good general travel read as it explores Saudi Arabia, the Maldives, Caribbean and Australia and covers a time frame of 1982- now, Roberts visits reefs after the Gulf War and Hussein savaged Kuwait's crude oil, goes to the Great Barrier Reef and gives talks with David Attenborough (who he also worked with for Blue Planet)... there is a LOT going on, which is where I needed some editing. This book was a long read, and could have done with some cuts here and there but at least I got breaks with some pretty pictures.

[Bobbijo Harrison · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Tropical coral reefs are the richest of all marine ecosystems. They cover just a tenth of one per cent of the global ocean but support at least a quarter of all the species that live in the sea."

If you're looking for a marine scientist's memoir or a popular science book about coral reefs, this particular book will probably meet you almost halfway between the two.

A really interesting read with a mix of personal experiences & scientific information. I enjoyed the writing style, and thought the writer did a good job of providing sometimes complex information in an easy-to-read format. Really enjoyed the inclusion of some of the pictures too. I do feel like some sections went on a little longer than they needed to, but overall it was enjoyable.

[Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a very descriptive novel and memoir about Roberts' time studying reefs and the ocean in various places. It follows him in many places as he goes to investigate the reefs there and the sea life that inhabits them. I enjoyed how descriptive and detailed this book was about Roberts' expeditions, but the book can be slow to read at times and it can drag on some parts that do not need to be very long. Overall, this book was a very interesting read, but could be slow at times.

[Honey · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 more like. Filled with vivid descriptions, this memoir was a fascinating deep dive into our coral reefs as much as a plea for marine conservation. The narrative is not necessarily something we havent heard about in years, but the author’s passion shines through. The science is also hefty but very accessible; I’m not new to marine biology so I would’ve liked to have read a bit more.

[Ashley · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. It was a little difficult to adjust to this author's style at first (very detailed descriptions of fish were a little much for me). But it became easier to read as the book went on. A lot of great information about reefs around the world, ending with the very real and catastrophic consequences facing reef ecosystems at present.

[Jacquie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great mix of memoir and plea for sanity in order to save our coral reefs. Even for those well versed in the science surrounding reefs, it's a nice travel through time to the Red Sea - an area that is often ignored despite its riches.

[Lara · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was more fascinated by his research which was smattered a bit throughout the memoir, and the photos.

[Foggygirl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent read, both illuminating and entertaining.

[Connor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Books about the oceans by actual ocean scientists are the best. Good book.

[Andie Creager · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable book especially for ocean life enthusiasts. Felt immersed in the ocean. A bit repetitive but still really good.

[Rat · Rating 3 out of 5]

first half was good, nice imagery and nice interesting. second half felt like it was just repeating itself; climate change is bad 💀 reefs will die 3

[pianogal · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've been on an ocean kick with reading lately. This was a good entry into that field.

[Henrietta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Truly eye opening on the state of our coral reefs. Also fascinating, found myself googling throughout lots of different fish species. Highly recommend!

[Colin Nagel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shoutout to my library card
Basically the memoir I hope to be able to write when my career is said and done

[Mary Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Scribd Audio

A memoir on early marine science and the continuing fight for our coral reefs against climate change, this one was such a great read. I admittedly had never considered Middle Eastern marine science and now feel very silly. This man’s (and his wife’s) perseverance in continuing their research sometimes in the face of dictatorships was admirable. I also can’t imagine having the opportunity to see so many reefs around the world while the global tourism domination was just beginning. A dream life.

I’m not sure if I’m as optimistic about the coral’s future as he is, but I do agree we can’t roll over and give up. The most incredible ecosystem on earth is worth saving.

[Tara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this book a lot, but it was not as enjoyable as I thought.
A lot of it is political. I enjoyed the reef and research aspects more than reading the lengthy passages about the Egyptian and Saudi governments. But it was thought-provoking and gorgeously written.

[Alicia · Rating 3 out of 5]

It wouldn't be a weekend readathon of any kind if I didn't include some kind of nature or animal nonfiction and this has been borrowed from the library for a few weeks-- waiting for the #24in48 readathon.

It was delightful. Roberts is a European scientist who studies reefs and traveled extensively around the Red Sea area specifically but also the South America, St. Thomas and the Caribbean, Australia, the Galapagos Islands, etc. beginning in the 80s when his memoir begins. He explains in detail the sensory sights of the reef with the array of fish and sharks and the understanding of the intricacies of the coral in sustaining it. He explains the studies and the data and the politics involved in the studies as well.

Interspersed in the book are some full-color spreads which I would have been disappointed weren't included (as such, the intro photo opposite the new chapter was a photo but in black and white--um, it's a book about reefs-- any picture NEEDS to be in color), but it was glorious to see because of the mystery and the magic of reefs. He spent time discussing his work and his wife and his life but it all melded together fluidly. A solid "underwater memoir".