Bill Belleville – författare

The Earth’s surface is mostly oceans, the human body is approximately 60% water, and the human imagination has been captivated by this life-giving, life-sustaining liquid from time immemorial.

According to Carl Hiaasen, Bill Belleville “writes gorgeously and straight from the heart. In The Peace of Blue, the documentarian and nature writer guides you on a lyrical journey to the natural places in Florida and the Caribbean that have been forged and shaped by water. He poetically underscores the vitality of this most essential substance in our lives by showing the many ways in which water-driven landscapes nurture plants, wildlife—and the human spirit.

Experience the thrill of traveling to the remote islands of Cuba and to sacred cenotes in the Dominican Republic. Contemplate the shores of Florida’s rivers and lakes and marvel at swamps and seepage slopes. Immerse yourself in the underwater world of clear, fresh springs, and dive into the deep karst caves that are worlds unto themselves.

Through adventure and contemplative excursions, Belleville shares his contagious respect—and awe—for the singularity and transcendence of the natural world. We are companions in his search for a distinct sense of place, fellow journeymen in his quest to discover within the watery depths a greater awareness that informs and shapes our common identity.

Losing It All to Sprawl is the poignant chronicle of award-winning nature writer Bill Belleville and how he came to understand and love his historic Cracker farmhouse and "relic" neighborhood in central Florida, even as it was all wiped out from under him. Belleville''s narrative is eloquent, informed, and impassioned, a saga in which tractors and backhoes trample through the woods next to his home in order to build the backbone of Florida sprawl--the mall.

As heavy machinery encircles Belleville and his community--the noise growing louder and closer, displacing everything Belleville has called home for the past fifteen years--he tells a story that is much older, 10,000 years older. The story stretches back to the Timucua and the Mayaca living in harmony with Florida''s environment; the conquistadors who expected much from, but also feared, this "land of flowers"; the turn-of-the-century tourists "modernizing" and "climatizing" the state; the original Cracker families who lived in Belleville''s farmhouse. In stark contrast to this millennia-long transformation is the whiplash of unbridled growth and development that threatens the nearby wilderness of the Wekiva River system, consuming Belleville''s home and, ultimately, his very sense of place.

In Florida, one of the nation''s fastest growing states (and where local and state governments encourage growth), balancing use with preservation is an uphill battle. Sprawl spreads into the countryside, consuming not just natural lands but Old Florida neighborhoods and their unique history. In Losing It All to Sprawl, Belleville accounts for the impacts--social, political, natural, personal--that a community in the crosshairs of unsustainable growth ultimately must bear, but he also offers Floridians, and anyone facing the blight of urban confusion, the hope that can be found in the rediscovery and appreciation of the natural landscape.

Modern life has a tendency to trap people in cubicles, cars, and cookie-cutter suburbs. Thankfully, someone comes along now and then to remind us of the beauty that presents itself when we turn off the information feeds and turn away from the daily grind.

Bill Belleville’s enchanting Salvaging the Real Florida invites readers to rediscover treasures hidden in plain sight. Join Belleville as he paddles a glowing lagoon, slogs through a swamp, explores a spring cave, dives a "literary" shipwreck, and pays a visit to the colorful historic district of an old riverboat town. Journey with him in search of the apple snail, the black bear, a rare cave-dwelling shrimp, and more. Everywhere he goes, Belleville finds beauty, intrigue, and, more often than not, a legacy in peril.

Following in the tradition of John Muir, William Bartram, and Henry David Thoreau, Belleville forges intimate connections with his surroundings. Like the works of Marjory Stoneman Douglas and Archie Carr, his evocative stories carry an urgent and important call to preserve what is left of the natural world.

Geography, politics, and other factors have allowed Cuba to preserve the region''s most pristine coast and offshore marine environment. Deep Cuba recounts Bill Belleville''s month-long journey around the island in the company of American and Cuban marine biologists and a Discovery Channel film crew. It was the first, and so far only, United States submersible research expedition in Cuban waters. From coral reefs to mangrove swamps to a submerged volcanic mountain, the voyagers encountered sublimely wild places unseen before by anyone from the United States—or even by many Cubans.Belleville conveys the tempo of the scientists'' workday, during which the routine gathering of data and specimens could be punctuated by trips in a state-of-the-art submersible, the discovery of new species, or a tropical storm. Throughout the trip, as well, all on board had to work through differences that arose from the expedition''s contrary goals: to produce a commercially viable seagoing adventure film and to conduct controlled, methodical scientific investigations.Belleville paces his coverage of the expedition with absorbing stories about the history and culture of the island''s peoples, from the indigenous Taino to its current inhabitants of African and European heritage. Deep Cuba even includes a candid portrait of Castro himself. An avid diver, sport fisherman, and naturalist, El Comandante paid a visit aboard the research vessel.Deep Cuba is an engaging mix of nature and travel writing, along with scientific reportage that is keenly attuned to current crises in research funding. Revealed here is a magnificent marine world with crucial ecological links to the Caribbean Basin and the southeastern United States.

Geography, politics, and other factors have allowed Cuba to preserve the region''s most pristine coast and offshore marine environment. Deep Cuba recounts Bill Belleville''s month-long journey around the island in the company of American and Cuban marine biologists and a Discovery Channel film crew. It was the first, and so far only, United States submersible research expedition in Cuban waters. From coral reefs to mangrove swamps to a submerged volcanic mountain, the voyagers encountered sublimely wild places unseen before by anyone from the United States—or even by many Cubans.Belleville conveys the tempo of the scientists'' workday, during which the routine gathering of data and specimens could be punctuated by trips in a state-of-the-art submersible, the discovery of new species, or a tropical storm. Throughout the trip, as well, all on board had to work through differences that arose from the expedition''s contrary goals: to produce a commercially viable seagoing adventure film and to conduct controlled, methodical scientific investigations.Belleville paces his coverage of the expedition with absorbing stories about the history and culture of the island''s peoples, from the indigenous Taino to its current inhabitants of African and European heritage. Deep Cuba even includes a candid portrait of Castro himself. An avid diver, sport fisherman, and naturalist, El Comandante paid a visit aboard the research vessel.Deep Cuba is an engaging mix of nature and travel writing, along with scientific reportage that is keenly attuned to current crises in research funding. Revealed here is a magnificent marine world with crucial ecological links to the Caribbean Basin and the southeastern United States.