I read this book some time ago but keep coming back to it and thinking about it all over again. It's a fascinating look at the history of seashells around the world, not only the biologic aspect but it digs into the history of how shells were collected and exchanged as currency. I learned so much about different types of shells. It's made me look at my local beach differently, with a new appreciation for the tiny critters below my feet. This is a great book for anyone even slightly interested in nature, history, or marine biology.

I so enjoyed this book. Very informative. I often share my seashell collection with children in story times and teach thm about the animals that create them and live in them (hermit crabs!). Recommend to shell collectors and as a gift to same.

A fascinating and informative read, I really liked that each chapter focused on individual shells and the creatures that inhabit them, their natural history, archeology and future.

A beautiful book on the world of seashells, from the scientific to the economic. Anyone interested in the sea or the way humans affect it will love this book.

The sound of the sea by Cynthia Barnett (W.W Norton group) 4 stars
This fantastic nonfiction book tells the story of the history, science and climatic impact of shells and their environments.
I found this book very interesting and informative. I learnt so many new things and it wasn't hard to read or understand.
I never understood that shell collecting was so advanced that people actually take the live creatures from the sea to harvest their shell. I found it so interesting learning about the amazing creatures that live and hide within or seas and oceans , also learning how they have evolved to cope with climate change or not so in many cases.
Each wonderful chapter starts with a beautiful pencil drawn piece of artwork showing these amazing and fascinating sea creatures.
The most interesting fact for me was that 90% of people do not know how shells are made. This misinterpretations are fully explained by the author. She writes to help people understand the nature that surrounds us and the impact we unwittingly have on our most precious environment.
So much praise goes to the author and her publishing team for producing such a wonderful and insightful book that can be enjoyed and understood by all.
Also posting the same review Barnes&noble, waterstones, kobo,Google books and amazon where available.

I loved this book! I learned so much about seashells and as someone who cannot visit a beach from our home in Central Florida and now bring home shells, this was the perfect read. The way that Barnett focuses not only on the shells but the animals inside them, the way people have interacted with shells and how the future of these mollusks means for all of us on this planet is both engaging and important.

Cynthia Barnett has written a beautiful tale of the sea that will educate, inspire, and transport readers to a gorgeous beach as each chapter unfolds with more details about the seashells that adorn the sandy shores.

I learned so much and Barnett did an excellent job writing about both the history and importance of seashells.

A very comprehensive guide to shells and their history. As someone who grew up near the sea I have often wished to learn more about it and this book certainly goes into plenty of detail. This does read more like a reference book to me and as someone new to ocean life and history, I felt there was a lot of new information to take in. This book might be better suited to someone with some prior knowledge of shells and the sea and who wishes to take their learning further. I think the front cover is stunning and very eye catching. I do wish there was images inside, I think this would really be a great addition to a very well researched book. Many thanks to the publisher for the ARC.

A book of all things shells. This book reads as a textbook and provides anything and everything you have ever wanted to know about shells. I was disappointed that there were not any photographs. There were multiple drawings., but it wasn’t the same. Shells have so much beauty and uniqueness, I felt like something was missed by not capturing some of the color and images they represent. All in all though, very informative. I received a complimentary copy from the publisher via NetGalley and all opinions expressed are my own, freely given.

I’m the first to rate and review this book. Guess not that many seashell fans out there? Well, that’s a shame. Consider reading this book and changing your mind.
Every single thing you never knew you always wanted to know about seashells. And mollusks. A book that took the author six years to write and me an uncharacteristic several days to finish. There’s a chance I might have overestimated my interest in the subject, went in expecting a shorter book, GR’s page count is wrong, but the book actually proved to be surpassingly compelling, engaging, erudite and exceptionally informative.
Not just a quaint beach souvenir, seashells have a fascinating and storied past as art and currency and building materials and food and collectors’ items. From abundantly present to alarmingly endangered, it turns out that seashells are so much more intricate, complex and interesting than just those things Sally sells by the seashore.
The author traveled the world in creating this book, meaning it also serves as a travelogue for all you armchair travelers. But of course, she wasn’t the first one to go to great lengths (geographically and otherwise) for seashells, it’s been done for centuries by intrepid scientists and obsessive collectors, all featured within this book. Strange what people will go crazy for. Even stranger than the author will still eat the seafood nestled within the seashells that so fascinate her. It’s like…oh magical, but also delicious.
But, while their innards don’t at all seem appetizing to me, the shells themselves do have a certain magical appeal, the precise intricate beauty of design alone…lovely. So, it wasn’t that difficult to understand the attraction of the subject and the book makes you appreciate it all the more, from a more informed position. I now know the difference between conchology and malacology, among many other things. The story of seashells and their inhabitants is, as it turns out, absolutely worth a 400some page book. Complete with a potent environmental message. Long read but worth it. Recommended. Thanks Netgalley.