{"product_id":"on-the-sponge-islands-loss-and-restoration-in-the-aegean-9781595343321","title":"On the Sponge Islands: Loss and Restoration in the Aegean","description":"When \u003cb\u003eJulia Martin\u003c\/b\u003e visits the Greek islands of the Dodecanese, beauty and suffering seem inextricable. \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eOn the Sponge Islands\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e follows her journey through Rhodes, Symi, Halki, Kalymnos, and Patmos to trace the cultural and ecological legacy of sponge diving. Because of their wonderful porosity, sea sponges have always been perfect for a myriad of human uses, and men from the islands had been diving for them and trading them since antiquity. In the late nineteenth century new deep sea diving suits made it possible to mine the seabed as never before and bring home untold wealth. It was a rich harvest that came at the cost of many lives. And it couldn't last. Everything, one might say, flowed through sponges. Until it didn't. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eOver three visits, Martin meets Aphrodite, Lefteris, Manuel, Zinovia, and others whose lives are bound to the sea. Through their stories, she uncovers the rise and fall of the sponge trade and its deep entanglement with environmental devastation. The islands bear the scars of war, both human and ecological. And yet, despite all of this, the Aegean remains a glory of blue. For all of its plunder, the sea is still luminous and alive, and conversations with the islanders keep returning to the heart. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eOn the Sponge Islands\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e brings together natural history and ecosocial reckoning. Martin's lyrical, searching prose is rich in dialogue, extraordinary characters, and curious tales. While the devastation of the Aegean seabed may mirror the wider ecological catastrophe, the green renewal taking root on some of the islands is an embodiment of hope. This is a story of extinction and resilience, of loss and restoration. It reminds us that it may not be too late--not yet.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Julia Martin\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Terra Firma\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 05\/05\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 320\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.82lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.50h x 5.50w x 0.72d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781595343321\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e 03\/16\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eForeword\u003c\/i\u003e 04\/27\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eJulia Martin\u003c\/b\u003e is a South African writer and literary scholar. She is the author of \u003ci\u003eOn the Sponge Islands: Loss and Restoration in the Aegean, A Millimetre of Dust: Visiting Ancestral Sites, \u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Blackridge House: A Memoir\u003c\/i\u003e. She collaborated with Gary Snyder on \u003ci\u003eNobody Home: Writing, Buddhism, and Living in Places\u003c\/i\u003e and is the coauthor, with Barry Lopez, of \u003ci\u003eSyntax of the River: The Pattern Which Connects.\u003c\/i\u003e She is also the author of numerous essays on place, literature, and ecology. She lives in Cape Town, South Africa, and is a professor emeritus in the Department of English at the University of the Western Cape.\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"booksdeli.com","offers":[{"title":"Julia Martin \/ Paperback \/ English","offer_id":48230555746461,"sku":"9781595343321","price":27.54,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0619\/5648\/9373\/files\/img_affaee18-543d-4ec1-9343-86eb16845a90.jpg?v=1778577131","url":"https:\/\/booksdeli.com\/products\/on-the-sponge-islands-loss-and-restoration-in-the-aegean-9781595343321","provider":"booksdeli.com","version":"1.0","type":"link"}