land-locked population of freshwater sharks in the
world. They were said to have been trapped when
a bay of the Pacifi c Ocean was cut off by volcanic
action and fi lled by rain …”
- Thomas B. Thorson, The Impact of Commercial
Exploitation on Sawfi sh and Shark Populations in
Lake Nicaragua, 1982, American Fisheries Society
In the midst of pursuing Nicaragua lake sharks,
the author shares his passion and life-long
relationship with baseball. “Along with gear for
catching sharks, baseballs were among the things I
took to Nicaragua. A dozen baseballs, fi ve
uniform jerseys and two gloves were stashed in
amongst the fi shing reels and wire leader.”
This theme continues.
“The drive from Grenada to San Carlos took
us seven hours. The only stops we made were
for hitchhikers, and once when I passed a boy
wearing an ancient baseball glove. In the rearview
mirror I could see him waving, so I stopped and
gave him a baseball. Indeed, there was no other
reason to stop, for there were no stores or rest
places of any kind.”
Randy Wayne White is true to his subject
matter throughout this collection of essays and
understands the places he writes about.
Published in 1999, this wide variety of
experiences highlights people and places that
have aged well and resonate in today’s world.
The Sharks of Lake Nicaragua is worth your time
and will be the starting point for your next, much
deserved, adventure-travel.
“What fun it is to join White, dashing through
the snow on a fi ve-dog Iditarod sled in Alaska, on a
frozen lake in Minnesota, on a combat jet dogfi ghting
in the sky above Orlando, all vicariously but just
about as vividly as if we were there.”
- Miami Sunday Herald
Randy Wayne White has written 25 Doc Ford
novels. Salt River is his latest installment with a
release date of February 11, 2020. He has four
must read collections of Outside magazine columns
and his Hannah Smith series debuted with “Gone,”
“Deceived” and “Haunted.” He is a veteran fi shing
guide and lives on Sanibel Island.
You can purchase The Sharks of Lake Nicaragua
at randywaynewhite.com, in most bookstores and
on amazon.com.
Jonathan Herbert is an award-winning writer who
grew up in Englewood. His novels, Banyan Street
& Silver King, have won multiple literary awards,
including recognition from the Paris Book
Festival. You can follow him on Twitter
@herbertnovels or online at herbertnovels.com.
November/December 2019 GASPARILLA MAGAZINE 93
Book Review continued from page 67
January/February 2020 GASPARILLA MAGAZINE 3
/randywaynewhite.com
/amazon.com
/herbertnovels.com
