This non-fiction account of a lone great white shark that terrorised unknowing and naive New Jersey holiday makers is a real-life account of Jaws. Incidentally, writer Peter Benchley based his novel on the same 1916 attacks as this book.
Early in the book much is said about rogue sharks, and I immediately took a disliking to what I expected the tone of the book would be; a menacing purpose-driven shark actively preferring people after getting its first taste of human flesh. Luckily it isn’t the case, with Capuzzo walking the line of advocating for either side of the argument, with a carefully worded explanation of how the shark was drawn to the coastline serving as the reality of its diversion.
I’ve recommended certain non-fiction books before to staunch fiction readers only to have them admit later of letting it gather dust in the corner. Others, like In Cold Blood, are popular with everybody I palm it off to. Sadly this book is the former, and even interested fictioners would be wary of entire chapters without even mention of the shark.
After saying that, it is an enjoyable read and a great account of a small slice of a shark’s life, which is almost as much of a mystery as it was in 1916.
