Key narrative
From Nature's Authors page (Nature 447, xi; 2007):
It's one thing to review a book about events in your scientific field; it's quite another to find yourself a character in the story. Per Ahlberg, a palaeontologist at Uppsala University in Sweden, says he experienced "a dislocating feeling" while reviewing Swimming in Stone: The Amazing Gogo Fossils of the Kimberley by John Long. Ahlberg found that he had a "walk-on part" in the story about the finding, excavation and analysis of a treasure trove of fish fossils in an Australian barrier reef that is now above ground. Ahlberg's feeling of displacement increased when he came across "a rather unflattering photo of me with Mike Coates in the field".
Perhaps because of his proximity to the story, Ahlberg enjoyed the review process. "The pleasure of reviewing a book like this one is that not only is the subject familiar to me, but I've been to the locality and I know many of the people who featured in it." Despite some minor quibbles about details, Ahlberg was able to give the book his seal of approval. "I didn't have to throw the thing at the wall in frustration," he smiles.
