£35
Plus p&p from www.scubazoo.com
Natural History Publications (Borneo) • ISBN: 9838120944

Standing out among some fine publications this month is a coffee-table book with a conscience by the British ex-pat filming collective known as Scubazoo. If you want to buy a book that celebrates the beauty and diversity of tropical diving, this is the best available. Ostensibly, it's a straightforward celebration of the titular triumvirate of islands off northeast Borneo, which are popular with divers because of the variety of life (Sipadan remains the best place in the world to see turtles underwater). However, it also serves as an environmental rallying call, urging the Malaysian government to put in place measures to protect this fragile environment.

Co-author Simon Christopher contributes a sizeable chapter about the environmental challenges facing Malaysia, and sets down the steps he believes should be taken if these places are to be preserved. Other chapters describe the islands and their marine vistas, very much from the underwater photographer's point of view.

The display images that make up the 'gallery' pages of the book are some of the best I have ever seen - I defy anyone to look and them and not want to go diving immediately. There is Jason Isley's incredible photograph of 24 giant bumphead parrotfish sweeping across the reef, Matthew Oldfield's compelling shot of a jawfish in full display and Roger Munns' intimate portrait of a thorny seahorse.

All in all, it's a classic. I only hope the Malaysian government, which commissioned this book, responds to the environmental challenges that the authors set out so clearly. By Simon Rogerson