This book is the autobiography of Robert J. Ballard an oceanographer and explorer probably best known for discovery of the wreckage of the Titanic in 1985. The book covers a large time span; from his childhood in California through his retirement from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute in 1997.

That's a lot to fit in one book and the book has a breezy, breathless pace as the author races from one expedition to the next. The parts of the book that work the best are the first hand accounts of the actual dives from the many expeditions. There are too many expeditions to cover each one in detail and there is a clear sense that many of the chapters could be developed into an entire book. The author has in fact written a number of books since this one.

The structure of the book is loosely based on writer Joseph Campbell's ideas as expressed in the famous Power of Myth Interviews. Chapters are organized into six sections titled The Dream, Preparation, Going Forth, Being Tested, Overcoming, and Gaining Truth. This is an artificial distinction for what is really just a strict chronological ordering of events. It is also worth noting that there is no table of contents, index or bibliography included in the book.

The list of expeditions Ballard has been involved with is impressive. A partial list includes: geological explorations of the Mid-Atlantic ridge that helped prove the theory of plate tectonics, discovery of thermal energy based lifeforms around hydrothermal vents, mapping of the wreckage of the nuclear submarine Thresher, discovery of the Titanic, discovery of the Bismarck. He is an explorer of the first rank and has contributed greatly to human exploration of the strange an alien world of the deep-sea environment.

The back cover of the book proclaims him to be "The world's most renowned and accomplished oceanographer". That's going a bit far and this statement illustrates the biggest weakness of the book. The author makes some attempt to share credit with others, but his heart is clearly not in it. There is a tone of self-centered megalomania that drifts just below the surface throughout book. It's not strong enough to be off-putting, but is noticeable. It's almost almost expected for someone of Ballard's accomplishments to have a large ego, perhaps it's even a prerequisite. He should have put some more effort into toning down the self-promotional rhetoric though. His accomplishments speak for themselves.

I believe that this book is out of print. I bought my copy at a local used bookstore. Amazon shows plenty of used copies for sale and Ballard has authored numerous books since this one comvering some of this same material.

This book receives an overall lukewarm recommendation from XS-Adventure. It's worth reading about the accomplishments of one of the most significant ocean explorers of the late 20th century even though the caliber of the writing and organization are not the best they could be.