Chris Hipp
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the Padi Encyclopedia of Recreational Diving is great if you want to learn about dive theory.....it is some seriously heavy reading though.
Good diving books
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I would say that if I could only read one book about diving, it would Cousteau's Silent World. It may not teach you deco theory, but it tells you where SCUBA came from! There's nothing like remembering how they used to dive for food because the Germans controlled France to make you not complain when the wind makes you cold on the dive boat 
To learn actual diving technique and theory, I second the PADI encyclopedia of recreational diving. It took me a whole week to digest it, and I'm a pretty fast reader. Alternately, if you want something older and a little more scientific, The New Science of Skin and SCUBA Diving is great as well.
To learn actual diving technique and theory, I second the PADI encyclopedia of recreational diving. It took me a whole week to digest it, and I'm a pretty fast reader. Alternately, if you want something older and a little more scientific, The New Science of Skin and SCUBA Diving is great as well.
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The classic Ashley Book of Knots for your bookshelf, and the paperback Morrow Guide to Knots to stuff in a dive box.
Nothing says "inexperienced" like gear secured by an endless series of overhand knots.
Nothing says "inexperienced" like gear secured by an endless series of overhand knots.
David Wilson
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I also have a copy of the PADI encyclopedia of recreational diving, dated 1993, and agree that it attempts both broad and in-depth coverage of the subject matter. However, I find its treatment of the historical development of diving equipment to be coloured by occasional smugness about modern times having the monopoly of wisdom, e.g. the conviction that "composite" fins must be better than all-neoprene/rubber ones because the products of petrochemistry must be better than the fruits of nature. The development of diving equipment technology from the pioneering days to the present, like technology of any kind, is often more about trade-offs, manufacturing economics and whims of fashion than it is about genuine scientific progress. In my eyes, modern diving gear is "different", not better just because it's new.
I'm a big fan of pre-1970s diving and I snorkel accordingly, using a traditional rubber-skirted oval mask, a pair of all-rubber full-foot fins and a simple J-shaped snorkel when I swim in the North Sea off the North East coast of England. I have a modest library of diving books, about 200 volumes, all published before 1980. My favourite tome is Peter Small's Your guide to underwater adventure - I own a first edition published in 1957:
My favourite photograph within the book is the following:
This picture of a British family enjoying snorkelling at the seaside in the UK, together with its caption "If underwater swimming is not fun, it's not anything", stands in stark contrast to the popular perception of modern diving as an activity which can only be pursued by beautiful people in remote tropical paradises with overengineered, overfeatured and overpriced equipment. Small was a brilliant journalist who was also one of the founder members of the British Sub Aqua Club. He died at a tragically young age while assisting in a depth record attempt in the early 1960s.
Small's book, which helped me fall in love with my lifelong passion of snorkelling, has the following blurb on its dust jacket:
This is a book for the serious beginner, going into careful details of equipment and technique, and explaining the Why as well as the How of things whenever possible. "I have tried," says Peter Small, "to write the sort of book which I would like to have read when I first felt the urge to take up underwater swimming." Do's and Don'ts of choosing equipment - and approximate prices - are examined and the steps in training are followed stage by stage. The author also describes some of the interesting things that can be done underwater, including photography, surveying, and archaeological exploration, and concludes with useful appendices giving details of where cylinders can be re-charged, holiday and training centres, a book list and films that are available for hire.
I'm a big fan of pre-1970s diving and I snorkel accordingly, using a traditional rubber-skirted oval mask, a pair of all-rubber full-foot fins and a simple J-shaped snorkel when I swim in the North Sea off the North East coast of England. I have a modest library of diving books, about 200 volumes, all published before 1980. My favourite tome is Peter Small's Your guide to underwater adventure - I own a first edition published in 1957:
My favourite photograph within the book is the following:
This picture of a British family enjoying snorkelling at the seaside in the UK, together with its caption "If underwater swimming is not fun, it's not anything", stands in stark contrast to the popular perception of modern diving as an activity which can only be pursued by beautiful people in remote tropical paradises with overengineered, overfeatured and overpriced equipment. Small was a brilliant journalist who was also one of the founder members of the British Sub Aqua Club. He died at a tragically young age while assisting in a depth record attempt in the early 1960s.
Small's book, which helped me fall in love with my lifelong passion of snorkelling, has the following blurb on its dust jacket:
This is a book for the serious beginner, going into careful details of equipment and technique, and explaining the Why as well as the How of things whenever possible. "I have tried," says Peter Small, "to write the sort of book which I would like to have read when I first felt the urge to take up underwater swimming." Do's and Don'ts of choosing equipment - and approximate prices - are examined and the steps in training are followed stage by stage. The author also describes some of the interesting things that can be done underwater, including photography, surveying, and archaeological exploration, and concludes with useful appendices giving details of where cylinders can be re-charged, holiday and training centres, a book list and films that are available for hire.
The Rapture of the Deep: And Other Dive Stories You Probably Shouldn't Know by Michael Zinsley
All derived from the NOAA manual.
BabyDuck
Contributor
'cave diving articles & opinions' edited by jill heinerth & bill oigarden - i think it might be interesting even if you never plan to cave dive.
akscubaduck1
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On the technical end of things. Any IANTD manual, The Technical Diver Encyclopedia, The Tao of Survival Underwater (most of it is good reading), Cave Diving Communications NSS-CDS, Basic Cave Diving NSS-CDS, Basic Underwater Cave Sureying, Oxygen Hacker's Companion, Inspecting Cyclinders PSI too name a few of my favorites.
Terry
Terry
Dale Lusby
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I just finished reading Fatal Depth which is about the Andrea Doria. Pretty good book.
I second Submerged and Diver Down.
I second Submerged and Diver Down.
Here are my picks by category.
Nostalgic - The Ocean World of Jaque Cousteau, The New Science of Skin and SCUBA Diving (1962), Sport Diving A to Z (1976) by Dennis Graver
Reference - The Diver's Handbook of Underwater Calculations (a lot of info for any diver but oriented toward the commercial diver) is just a reference manual and it runs a second to the
NOAA Diving Manual, Padi's Encyclopedia of Recreational Diving
General Interest - Hidden Treasures of the Seas by National Geographic Society (also old, 88 but it is a good easy read with a taste of everything including pirate treasures)
Wreck Diving - The series on the wrecks of North Carolina by Rod Farb (maybe out of print?)
Novels - A Sword for Pizzaro is a great easy read, Down to a Sunless Sea and the other books in the series by Poyer.
The Last Dive which I guess falls under the category of true and unfortunate stories.
Let me also say thank you to the guys who recommended my book Diver Down here. I appreciate the comments and I am glad you enjoyed the book and found it useful.
Safe Diving
Nostalgic - The Ocean World of Jaque Cousteau, The New Science of Skin and SCUBA Diving (1962), Sport Diving A to Z (1976) by Dennis Graver
Reference - The Diver's Handbook of Underwater Calculations (a lot of info for any diver but oriented toward the commercial diver) is just a reference manual and it runs a second to the
NOAA Diving Manual, Padi's Encyclopedia of Recreational Diving
General Interest - Hidden Treasures of the Seas by National Geographic Society (also old, 88 but it is a good easy read with a taste of everything including pirate treasures)
Wreck Diving - The series on the wrecks of North Carolina by Rod Farb (maybe out of print?)
Novels - A Sword for Pizzaro is a great easy read, Down to a Sunless Sea and the other books in the series by Poyer.
The Last Dive which I guess falls under the category of true and unfortunate stories.
Let me also say thank you to the guys who recommended my book Diver Down here. I appreciate the comments and I am glad you enjoyed the book and found it useful.
Safe Diving
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