Borders is not a charitable organization (just ask the stockholders) and it is probably only fair to spend a little bit there. That would especially be true since we were parked at that table for a couple of hours and skimmed a bunch of books and magazines.

Since several of the other customers had frozen to death, it wasn't crowded.

Three aquarium fish related books rather jumped out at me, because they looked interesting and might have some relevance to some of us on Guppylog. The first nearly and may yet claim a gift certificate received over Christmas; it's themes are so reminiscent of a lot of conversations on-line. 500 Ways to Be a Better Freshwater Fishkeeper is a wonderful collection of hints and tips and insights into the aquarist's craft. Compiled by an all-star crew of UK fish heads, it looked a bit like the several of  the editorial staff of Practical Fishkeeping Magazine gathered with a couple of friends and brainstormed on what they would want their friends should know if starting with aquariums. One could almost see them gathering and putting their heads together around a table in the common area of a place like Borders or Barnes and Nobles. And that way the snacks, coffees, teas and chocolates would be a business expense.

I was familiar with some of the things they discussed and tips they offered. It was fun though to be surprised by a bunch of new insights. In most cases one couldn't do less than applaud what they were doing and saying. (I still disagree with pouring the shop water from the bag into the aquarium when acclimating new purchases, but put five fish heads in a room and there will be honest disagreements.) The hard cover book is easily read or sorted through.

The 2005 Firefly Press publication sorts the tips by topic. They will sound pretty familiar to Guppylog members and most experienced aquarists. They included:
Better Aquariums
Heating and Lighting
Water Management
Aquarium Plants
Aquascaping
Fish Buying
Feeding
Fish Keeping Skills
Tropical Fish Compatibility
Breeding
Maintenance
Health Care

That work and those, which follow, are nice presents. However it seems like so much that gets suggested here involved expenditures of money and time. If one has a little patience and a bit of time, one can usually order works like these through your local public library on Inter-Library Loans. I don't think our reference librarians recognize us yet, but they have done wonders in producing rare works, out of print publications and books which we simply wouldn't have been able to afford. There is a little gasoline consumed in driving over to a library (while on other errands)  and the need for a little time on the "holdings" computer and to fill out request cards. But the rest of the expenses are "your taxes at work."

Tropical Fish from A to Z (Barrons Press, 2005, paperback but with a plastic overleaf) is a beautifully photographed work. I'm always a little skeptical of a book using common names and one which claims to give comprehensive coverage of the hobby in only 300 images. I also worried about the fish from B to Y. Written by German author Ulrich Schiewen, it works pretty well in an American context. Some of their common names aren't the ones we might be familiar with, but there were some great fish featured and it is a pretty good cross section of the hobby. I found myself playing mind games as to what would be in there, what species would be featured and what they would be called.

 What Fish? A Beginner's Guide to Tropical Fish is another UK entry, produced by PFK editor Nick Fletcher and a bunch of his closest friends. Interpet published it in 2006. This is a good book to show a person before they buy any fish at all. Each species considered is given a profile on what they are like and what one can expect of them. So eventual size, diet, where they are from (which often says a lot about what they need), how they are sexed (sorted by gender), the type of aquarium useful, how big their aquarium should be, type of water, warmth needed, beneficial aquarium décor, zone(s) of the tank which the fish will inhabit, how many can be kept in a tank, behavior and the possibility of spawning them in an aquarium are all considered.

The images looked washed out. But the information: Priceless!

A few weeks ago, I swung by a grand opening of a pretty nice big box fish store in Bolingbrook, IL. They did have fish for half price, 10-gallon tanks for $3.99 and a bunch of other bargains. The number of families who left with equipment and no fish cheered me. There were those who left with their first aquarium AND fish. Sadly, probably almost none of those fish are alive three painful weeks later.

If only someone had said, read one of those books mentioned above first, then almost no one would have ignorantly taken fish home to be needlessly lost.

In a future life... ;)
when I set up a shop, at the grand opening tanks, stands, books, magazines and equipment will be on sale. Inside each tank will be taped Angelhologram's article on Fish-less Cycling. Maybe I'll sell the appropriate ammonia - right next to the test kits. The following week plants will be on sale. The 3rd to 4th week after opening, fish will be on sale. If customers don't mind taking a quick quiz on Fish-Less cycling and do ok on it, 20% more will be deducted from the price of their fish.