THE REEFS OF TAPROBANE

A most amiable continuation of this author's previous The Coast Of Coral (1956) here brings him back from that expedition and starts him off on one that takes him to Ceylon and the waters on its north, east, south and west — and over the land itself. He and Mike Wilson, with their new equipment for diving and photography, make their headquarters at Colombo, find new companions in the Ceylon Reafcombers, an underwater hunting group, and start their diving at Matara. They find out about rest houses; they develop an insatiable appetite for wrecks and locate not only ships but temple ruins and a sunken floating dock; the scandals of dynamiting fish are brought to their attention and their photographs help to bring the culprits to justice; they have no luck at the pearl beds in the Gulf of Manaar; Trincomalee provides a cross country trip by train and air; there are the ruins of Anaradhapuru and the rock fortress of Sigiriya to see. And the author's victory over the sarong, their experiences with cameras and film, and of course their encounters with marine life offer all sorts of exasperating and hair-raising happenings. What is known as a pleasure to read.