Marine naturalist James Dorsey brings to life the magic of San Ignacio Lagoon in Baja, Mexico--the age-old nursery of the Gray Whales, and only place on Earth where animals in their natural aquatic environment routinely seek out human contact. San Ignacio Lagoon in Baja, Mexico, is a gray whale sanctuary unlike any other. A nursery for Eschritus robustus since before recorded history, the lagoon is the only place in the world where animals in their natural aquatic environment routinely seek out human contact. It is a place where magical bonds between whales and humans form--a sanctuary not just literally but spiritually. No one understands this better than James Dorsey, who has worked as the lagoon's naturalist for two decades. Dorsey and his wife Irene found themselves growing attached to the intelligent, spirited creatures and the lagoon itself; their unexpected, deep connection to the place and its people evolved into a lifetime of chasing whales and self-discovery. But with the lurking threats of climate change and development, the future of the refuge is uncertain. In The Lagoon, Dorsey weaves his experiences with the history of San Ignacio Lagoon, including its origin as a killing ground for whales and its evolution into a sanctuary. He introduces the people that make the lagoon special, as well as the whales--their individual personalities, and the science behind their behavior. Looming over the narrative are the many dangers to the area, from the Mitsubishi corporation's attempts to build salt works to plans for resort development on the Baja coast, to pollution, and even to the orcas who hunt the gray whales. The Lagoon illuminates the magic of human connection to animals, and what those bonds can teach us about ourselves and our purpose on Earth. And Dorsey's tale is yet another reminder of the importance of preserving these animals and their natural habitats.

The Middle East and North Africa are experiencing the most fundamental transition in their post-colonial history. It is a transition that is changing the borders of nation states as well as their political and social structures. Conflicting visions of what those structures should look like have ensured that transition will take years, and these deep-seated differences have ensured that the transition process is volatile, brutal and bloody. The balance of power shifts like quicksand.Shifting Sands: Essays on Sports and Politics in the Middle East and North Africa is a compilation of essays that constitute a first stab at exploring the importance of sports in general and soccer in particular in the political, social and cultural development of the Middle East and North Africa since the beginning of the 20th century. In doing so, the book provides a new, fresh and unique perspective that contributes to understanding the turbulence sweeping the region that is fundamentally changing its geopolitics and political and social structures.

Author and explorer James Michael Dorsey has spent two decades visiting the world’s most remote tribal cultures. In BABOONS FOR LUNCH and Other Sordid Adventures, he tells his remarkable travel stories in rollicking accounts that keep readers off balance and eager for more. Many stories are funny, others are poignant, and quite a few are heart stopping, while others are unique insights into remote ways of life most of the world does not know exists. In this book the reader will climb a remote volcano in Ethiopia, cross the Sahara Desert with nomads, undergo a tribal exorcism, and visit shamans, healers, witch doctors, and holy men. This is not your average travel book, but an entree to some of the world’s remote corners and people.