Tetras and Other Characins

by Mark Phillip Smith

This is one from the Barron's series, and follows the usual format. The first half of the book introduces the family of fish- which has a wide variety of forms, so that was a bit confusing. Then there is the obligatory aquarium setup and fish care information. The second half of the book is a listing of many many species, with nice pictures and little descriptions. Most just have scientific names listed, not the familiar terms I know. Some were new or undescribed species when the book was written, so they don't even have a common name. Maybe they have one now, I don't know. There are a lot of attractive species in here, but I've realized I am not really interested in these kinds of fish. Although I might get a few for my tank they probably won't be the featured species. Thus about halfway through the book I just didn't want to read it anymore. The first part all felt redundant to me, so I was bored and skimming. The second half might have been more interesting, but it simply wasn't. I pretty much just looked at the pictures.

I borrowed this book from the public library.

Abandoned    95 pages, 2002