OUT LOOKS: AUTHOR EXPLORES DANGER OF STORMS.Byline: Rich Martin Special to the Daily News There's no more powerful, compelling villain than the sea. And it would be hard to find a better delineation of such a villainous character than in Sebastian Junger's ``The Perfect Storm: A True Story of Men Against the Sea'' (W.W. Norton & Co.; $23.95). The 228 pages track sailors trapped in the killer storm of 1991 in New England New England, name applied to the region comprising six states of the NE United States—Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut. The region is thought to have been so named by Capt. and Canada that destroyed ships, lives and dreams as a murderer in a mystery. It seems to evoke Herman Melville's classic ``Moby Dick'' in the naturalistic nat·u·ral·is·tic adj. 1. Imitating or producing the effect or appearance of nature. 2. Of or in accordance with the doctrines of naturalism. presentation; somehow humans come off as minor characters vainly trying to survive against an overwhelming force of rogue waves. And just as psychology can't explain the motivation of murderers, scientists can't explain the power of these waves. Like a good horror writer, Junger has captured the sensation of being in a giant storm: Increasing in intensity, a Force 9 storm sounds like a shriek shriek - exclamation mark , while a Force 12 - the rating of the fall 1991 storm - was a ``deep tonal vibration like a church organ.'' Just as Melville described the science behind whaling whaling, the hunting of whales for the oil that can be rendered from their flesh, for meat, and for baleen (whalebone). Historically, whale oil was economically the most important. Early Whaling Whaling for subsistence dates to prehistoric times. , Junger has provided background in nautical history, fishing and the sea (10,000 deaths of Gloucester, Mass., fishermen since the 19th century). Perhaps the most compelling part of the book is the description of the rescue of helicopter-borne men who were themselves sent to rescue the lost sailors. One man likened the ragged sea to the scarred surface of Mars; it proved equally forbidding. A survivor, jumping out of a rescue helicopter, broke bones during the fall and then was blown off his life raft. Totally losing awareness of the situation - this is normal during the shock of such trauma - he gradually was able to gain strength and swim to the others. The pilot of the helicopter had to stay with the craft as it crashed to give the other members of the crew the best chance to survive, and that meant a nightmarish scenario: escaping from a flooded, totally dark chopper upside-down. The survivors were near-death. One of the jumpers - perhaps the best-prepared of all - died, probably during the leap from the helicopter. The others lasted five hours in bitterly cold water until a rescue boat appeared. That any were saved at all is nothing short of miraculous. Like a good mystery, Junger's account is compelling, fascinating, horrifying . . . and hard to put down. Our rating: Four Stars ``Ice World: Techniques and Experiences of Modern Ice Climbing'' (The Mountaineers; $29.95) lays it all out, combining comprehensive details on methodology with descriptions of specific climbs. Perfectly fitting, since the Coloradan author, Jeff Lowe, knows his stuff. One of the world's top alpinists, he began his climbing career at age 7 when he accompanied his father to the summit of the Grand Teton. Here he has combined knowledge and experience to write an exhaustive work. The 256-pages provide an excellent guide for top-grade alpinists who want to stay sharp and for the less grizzled griz·zled adj. 1. Partly gray or streaked with gray: a grizzled beard. 2. Having fur or hair streaked or tipped with gray. who wants to reach the summit of ice-climbing skill. Lowe has accumulated information about such varied subjects as types of ice and features, history of climbing, equipment, preparations and a narrative of climbs complete with maps of climb routes. His experiences in Tibet and Peru were especially enlightening en·light·en tr.v. en·light·ened, en·light·en·ing, en·light·ens 1. To give spiritual or intellectual insight to: . Excellent color photos accompany the text, and many are breathtaking. However, the book has some basic organizational problems. Chapters on Lowe's personal endeavors are interspersed with more technical ones, making it a bit of a jumble. Lowe is a decent writer and his effort is workmanlike work·man·like adj. Befitting a skilled artisan or craftsperson; skillfully done. workmanlike Adjective skilfully done: a neat workmanlike job Adj. 1. , though sometimes overladen o·ver·lad·en adj. Loaded or burdened too heavily. Adj. 1. overladen - loaded past capacity overloaded with jargon. Our rating: Three Stars Folks in the San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. have had more than their share of recent encounters with mountain lions. ``Mountain Lion Alert'' (Falcon Press; $6.95) has combined the most important, practical information about the creatures in an easy-to-read, quick-to-understand guide. Most people acquainted with the outdoors probably know at least a little bit about mountain lions - that, for example, if confronted by one, it is folly to run away and best to try to make oneself seem as large as possible. But whatever your knowledge, the 128 pages by Steve Torres has enough useful information for anyone who might meet up with a cougar or a puma puma (py  `mə) or cougar (k .
Torres, a California biologist who has coordinated statewide research and management of the mountain lion and bighorn sheep Bighorn sheep a tall (up to 3 ft), heavy (up to 300 lb body weight) wild sheep that lives in inaccessible mountain country where it exercises its principal achievement of prodigious leaping and climbing. Called also Ovis canadensis. Several regional varieties, e.g. O. c. programs for the Department of Fish and Game, includes many useful tips. A few examples: when mountain lions are most dangerous (if they get closer and seem to be stalking), when to be most cautious (they are most active at dawn and dusk), whether to try to defend your pet (Torres says no) and whether cougars like pet food or garbage (they don't). Among the best parts are a compendium com·pen·di·um n. pl. com·pen·di·ums or com·pen·di·a 1. A short, complete summary; an abstract. 2. A list or collection of various items. of popular myths about mountain lions and short sections with advice for trail runners, trail riders and mountain bikers. Our rating: Two Stars CAPTION(S): Photo Photo: These books are great for advice and stories on ice climbing ice climbing Sports medicine An 'extreme sport' in which participants climb ice formations with pickaxes, often without ropes Injury risk Hypothermia, death. See Extreme sports, Novelty seeking behavior. , winter storms and mountain lions. |
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