“From the first Costeau film I saw and the fish I started keeping at the age of five, the first octopus and cuttlefish that squirted ink at me….I knew I couldn’t, wouldn’t stop exploring the sea” — Prince Hussain Aga Khan, from foreword to the book Diving Into Wildlife.

“The work of Hussain Aga Khan is visual poetry created in the sea that seduces the viewer to discover her mysteries and leads people to care. And when people care, change becomes possible” — Brian Skerry

BY ABDULMALIK J. MERCHANT
Publisher/Editor, Simerg

In 2015, Prince Hussain Aga Khan published his latest book, Diving Into Wildlife, a collection of extraordinary underwater photographs taken by the Prince in the Maldives, Tonga, Malaysia, Bahamas, Mexico and Egypt.

Diving Into Wildlife is published under the auspices of Focused on Nature (FON), an agency founded and established by Prince Hussain to “assist in the conservation and protection of threatened and endangered species, as well as habitat conservation efforts when and where possible.”

Focused on Nature seeks to fulfill this mission by providing grants to projects around the world which the FON team has identified and vetted as having immediate impacts in wildlife conservation, protection, preservation, and education. The funds distributed by FON to deserving organizations are raised by either direct contributions to FON or from the sale of unique and fine objects including limited edition photographs, art, clothing articles and books such as Diving Into Wildlife.

It gives us great pleasure to inform our readers that the Office of Prince Hussain has made available to Simerg copies of Diving Into Wildlife, as follows:

1. SPECIAL EDITION LIMITED NUMBERED AND SIGNED BY PRINCE HUSSAIN AGA KHAN

Prince Hussain personally signed and numbered sixty copies of Diving Into Wildlife as a special edition for worldwide distribution. Out of these sixty copies, Simerg has been assigned 12 copies, with numbers in the 20-34 range. Each limited numbered special edition is enhanced by an embossed logo of FON and includes a 9″ x 6″ unique photo insert.

Each of the 12 numbered and signed copies is being offered at US$250.00 (plus packaging and shipping of US$25.00, and applicable GST/PST/HST taxes in Canada), and only within North America. Each shipment will be trackable through Canada Post’s website.

As only 12 numbered and signed copies are available, a limit of one copy of this signed/limited numbered edition will be made available to any single individual. We shall try and process orders strictly as they are received via email requests.

The name of each purchaser of this special limited numbered edition copy will be submitted to FON. We therefore request buyers to provide their full name and address for submission to FON.

2. COPIES OF DIVING INTO WILDLIFE SIGNED BY PRINCE HUSSAIN AGA KHAN

Fifty copies of Diving Into Wildlife, personally signed by Prince Hussain, have also been made available to Simerg.

Each of the fifty signed copies is being offered at US$105.00 (plus a packaging and shipping cost of US$25.00, and applicable GST/PST/HST taxes in Canada), and only within North America. Each shipment will be trackable through Canada Post’s website.

The name of each purchaser of this signed copy will be submitted to FON. We therefore request buyers to provide their full name and address for submission to FON.

The pricing of both the special numbered and signed copies, as well as the signed copies, has not been requested by the author or the publisher, but is an initiative of Simerg.

As readers will recall, some seven years ago, Simerg offered both signed and unsigned copies of Prince Hussain’s book of animal photos entitled Animal Voyage. Prince Hussain had dedicated the book to Prince Sadruddin Aga Khan, and the proceeds from the sale of Animal Voyage went to the Prince Sadruddin Aga Khan Fund for the Environment. In a personally signed copy of the book, Prince Hussain thanked the publisher and editor of Simerg for assisting the fund by placing a large order.

Similarly, with Diving Into Wildlife, Simerg will contribute all proceeds (excluding packaging/postage/taxes) to FON. This initiative to ask a premium for numbered/signed copies and to submit this premium to FON has not been requested by the author or the publisher, but is a personal one.

A GREAT HONOUR

It is a great honour for Simerg to offer these special limited editions signed by Prince Hussain, and Simerg is delighted to support the work of Focused on Nature.

3. UNSIGNED COPIES OF DIVING INTO WILDLIFE

In addition to the special numbered/signed edition of Diving Into Wildlife, Simerg has also received copies of the unsigned edition. Interested individuals who are not able to acquire a signed copy may wish to consider purchasing the unsigned copy of this beautiful volume. Or, indeed, those who have acquired a copy of the special numbered/signed edition may wish to acquire a copy of the unsigned edition as a gift.

The unsigned copies are being offered at US$30.00 (plus a packaging and shipping cost of US$25.00, and applicable GST/PST/HST taxes in Canada), and only within North America. Each shipment will be trackable through Canada Post’s website.

All request for orders for delivery outside of North America will be considered, and these will be forwarded to FON for shipment from Europe, provided the book is still available.

HOW TO PURCHASE THE BOOK

Payment Methods:

Paypal: Simergbooks has been verified by Paypal. To purchase a copy, please send a request to  simergbooks@aol.com and an invoice will be generated from Paypal provided we have the book in stock in North America. In view of the limited quantities, payment should then be received within 24 hours after the invoice.

Email Transfer: To purchase a copy via email fund transfer, please send a request to simergbooks@aol.com. Once we have confirmed to you via email that a book is available, we will request you to submit a payment via email transfer. In view of the limited quantities payment should then be received within 24 hours after the invoice.

Note: Prices listed for the different versions of the book are in US dollars. For Canadian orders, the exchange rate in effect will be used to establish the purchase price in Canadian dollars.

BOOK DETAILS

“Diving Into Wildlife” by Hussain Aga Khan, published by Focused on Nature, June 2015, has a foreword by Prince Hussain Aga Khan, and is introduced by Brian Skerry, a world-renowned photojournalist specializing in marine wildlife and underwater environments. The 70 page hardback has a landscape format, appx. 13.25″ x 8.75″ (33cm x 22cm), and features 41 photos. ISBN: 978-2-35137-052-0.

SIMERG’S EXCELLENT CUSTOMER SERVICE

Over the years, Simerg has offered numerous collection items including Prince Hussain’s Animal Voyage and limited edition Golden Jubilee Stamp Frames to a very high level of customer satisfaction. Here are comments from some of our readers:

“My son was delighted with the excellent photography by Prince Hussain. We as a family will cherish this volume for a long time. Once again, thank you Simerg for making this book available in North America and your outstanding customer service and support.” Shamim Rajan, Richmond Hill, Ontario

“This is a beautiful piece of work!! The service was excellent. Very quick, safe and efficient turnaround and follow up. I recommend everyone to have a copy.” Nazir Alibhai, Markham, Ontario

“Thank you so much for the shipment – I received it today! I am impressed at how quickly the transaction went from the time of my order to the delivery. Great job!!” Zarah K.

We look forward to serving our readers with the same high level of satisfaction as before, with Prince Hussain Aga Khan’s new book “Diving Into Wildlife.”

Date posted: Monday, March 28, 2016.

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To reserve, purchase or inquire about Diving Into Wildlife, please write to simergbooks@aol.com.

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