While browsing stacks is fun and one encounters stuff never even dreamed of, the inventory computer was quicker (who ever uses the card catalogue anymore?) and burped out a whole bunch of books associated with Guppy and Guppies.

Precious few were in our local library though.

Some of the more amusing titles included: *Guppy Love or The Day The Fish Tank Exploded* ; *Don't
Tease The Guppies* ; *Two Guppies, a Turtle and Aunt Edna* ; *Guppies in Tuxidos: Funny Eponyms*
; and (for the 6th grade crowd) *Cannibal Animals: Animals That Eat Their Own Kind*. That last one was going to make into a movie starring Anthony Hopkins. ;)

I was looking for Stan Shubal's *Proper Care of Guppies* among others. It wasn't immediately available in the local library system.

What was though, was *Guppies, Mollies, Platys and Other Live-Bearers* by Harro Hieronimus. I was pleased to see it listed, surprised to see that book has been on the market for 10 years.

Barrons Press has released a number of "Complete Owner's Guides". These fish (and pet books) have been well translated from the German. Inexpensive, but well bound, the series offers terrific intros to a whole bunch of different groups of fish and aquatic interests.

Unfortunately not as many pet shops as should offer them. They move through the books stores, but sporadically. (If you have a bunch of discretionary cash, just print the library list and take the list to your book store. ;) They can look them up in that Books In Print catalogue and order most of what you would want.)

I have "met" Harro through a couple of Net mailing lists and a few e-mails on the side. He is a very well versed aquarist, gracious in helping and a professional writer of fish books. (His resume has gotta be impressive.) Because of his apt and insightful observations on the livebearers mailing list, I filled out the interlibrary form with that book's data and presented it to the young lady at the reference desk. About a week later we got a post card from the library noting that my request had arrived, it turns out, from a library about 30 miles away.

The book is not an exclusively guppy book, but the livebearer interests in this forum aren't limited to guppies either. It does offer insights useful for beginners and a little more experienced beginners (c'est moi.) I found my head nodding yes to a lot of things. Every now and then the response was, "Gee I never thought of that!" "Humm, I didn't know that." or "I'd NEVER think of that!"

The introduction giving an overview on livebearers and the end section highlighting a selection of "Popular Livebearers and Their Care" is not mandatory reading for guppy people, although it will give you a greater appreciation of what a livebearer is. Also, what may be popular among livebearer keepers in Germany ten years ago may not reflect American preferences. The Barrons series does pop unique German perspectives on readers once in a while. :)

His chapters "Advice for Buying" ; "Maintenance and Care" ; "The Proper Diet" ; Diseases of Live-bearers" ; "Breeding Live-bearers" and "Well Know Ornamental Varieties" are sooooo reminicent of postings to this site, that they would be hugely useful to virtually every in this forum.

Harro also really emphasizes the importance of selective breeding. We don't necessarily have to follow his advice, but it would be good (as an aquarist growing in the craft) to know what he is talking about.

The trip to the library cost me minimal gasoline and time. I really do feel a little better (or less badly) about our property taxes which will be mailed off to the county in the next hour. ;)