Al Klee (pronounced Clay) was an especially indefatigable writer and publicist on the hobby and it's history in the '60s and '70s. He has been reworking and expanding some of his previous stuff. Last fall we purchased his first Aquarium History about The Toy Fish and the early aquarium dealers and societies.

I'm happy to announce that a new book from Al Klee is now available. It is "The Guppy 1859-1967". This is a greatly expanded and revised edition (in both text and illustrations) of a series of articles that Klee wrote for Aquarium News in 1977.

The book is  8 1/2 X 11 in size, runs to 49 pages and is presented as a plastic comb-bound digital copy on high quality paper. The book has heavy paper colored covers which are protected front and back by full plastic sheets.

In addition to the numerous illustrations and the comprehensive text, the book is nicely indexed and contains three full pages of valuable references.

Al is always great in providing "ad copy", so without further adieu I will offer the author's following comments on the book:

"This fascinating history of the guppy, from its discovery to its early status in the aquarium world, is an introduction to people and places, errors and events, firsts and favorites. The original collectors of the guppy in the wild and the scientists involved varied from the adventurous, to the great, to the eccentric - all, however, were personalities worth knowing for more than just their names. It will be a surprise to many, for example, to learn that one of them served as an expert witness on the validity of the theory of evolution at the famous Scopes trial in Tennessee!

"The problems encountered in transporting the first shipments of the guppy to aquarists were daunting, and the hobby took decidedly different twists and turns as the introductions took place over time in Great Britain, Germany, and the United States. In America, for example, for over twenty years guppies took a back seat to the mollies, platies, and swordtails of the day, and sometimes were never even mentioned in the ads!

"For the first time ever, aquarists have an opportunity to see images of those scientists and aquarists who played an important part in this history, as well as pictures of original guppy habitats, and drawings and descriptions of strains that date back to the early 1930's. Meet a pioneer guppy developer who later turned his fish conservatory into a mouse house, visit the question of just how many guppy species there are, learn just how show standards evolved, and enjoy a laugh or two viewing guppy cartoons drawn by the author almost fifty years ago that still tickle "the finny bone". This is a good read not only for guppy fanciers, but also for any aquarist who enjoys having an important slice of aquarium history brought to life in word and pictures."

To see a copy of the cover of the book go to the photos section on the site and then click on "klee guppy".

The price of the book is $15.00 plus $2.50 for Media Mail Shipping (this is for the U.S. only. Elsewhere, please inquire for shipping rates). Anyone reading this who might be interested is invited to contact me off forum. Thanks.

Lee Finley
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