BOOKS and ART by MARK and MARISA RENZ

Mailing Address: 213 Lincoln Avenue, Lehigh Acres, FL 33936

Phone: 239-368-3252 fossilx@earthlink.net


Our web sites include:
PaleoPress.net for books, Fossil Expeditions guide service,
Megalodon Expeditions guide service, and Florida Time Forgot (nature photography)



Paperback book


Author: Mark Renz
Illustrators: Walter Hunt, Dan Varner, Todd Marshall, Rob Sula, Marisa Renz, Kyle Kirby
Publisher: PaleoPress
Signed copies available.
170 pages. Includes close to 400 images, both color and black & white.
Price: 29.95 plus 3.75 shipping (U.S. only) and 6 percent sales tax (1.50) for Florida residents. Overseas orders, please e-mail us for shipping price. Send check or money order to PaleoPress, 213 Lincoln Avenue, Lehigh Acres, FL 33972. Or for credit card orders, call 239-368-3252.

How does a shark grow 40 to 60 feet in length? Why would it need to? What sharks were its ancestors? What could possibly bring about its extinction? Or is this beast still out there somewhere in the vastness of our deepest seas, feeding on whales and giant squids, but leaving no trace of its activities?

* 48 international sites where you can search for Meg teeth
* The controversial rise and fall of Meg
* Color Identification section for Meg and her ancestors
* Terror index: Was Meg the baddest of the bad?
* Rumored Meg sightings
* 390 illustrations and photos



From the Forewords and Introductions:



"...The ultimate terror of the waters, sixty feet long, and just as predaceous in its behavior as the modern great white shark, was good old C. megalodon. Now, Mark Renz, who writes so well about Florida fossils, has given it its proper due. I hope you, the reader, enjoy this account as much as I have." --S. David Webb, Distinguished Research Curator of Fossil Vertebrates, Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida

"...It is unusually refreshing to have a combination of total fantasy and scientific accuracy. Mark Renz has a compulsive style of writing and has sought some of the most respected authorities available, to ensure this book is both up to date and scientifically credible." --David J. Ward, Fossil shark researcher and co-author of "Fossils"

"...In this beautifully illustrated book, Mark Renz has faithfully captured the sense of awe and discovery that accompanies finding and studying megalodon fossils. More importantly, he has been able to condense the arcane discussions of scientists to a manageable level of complexity, while maintaining a sense of wonder at the richness and complexity of the world around us." Bretton W. Kent, Author of "Fossil Sharks of the Chesapeake Bay Region", and faculty member, College of Life Sciences at the University of Maryland at College Park

"Mark Renz is back with "Supershark." And does he have some stories to tell!" --Edward Morris, reviewer for BookPage and ForeWord

"Forget T-rex and the rest of his dino-pals. If you want to read about the number one monster of all time, read this book." --Steve Alten, novelist, "Meg" and "The Trench"





Paperback Book

"Desert Sharks"

(paperback)


"Desert Sharks" is $19.95, plus $3 shipping in U.S., (add 6% sales tax for Florida residents.)

Author: Mark Renz

Publisher: PaleoPress

Release date: August, 2009

Call 239-368-3252 to order by credit card, or send check to PaleoPress, 213 Lincoln Ave., Lehigh Acres, FL 33972.

E-mail "fossilx@earthlink.net" for overseas orders. Please do not send your credit card number by e-mail.

FOR MORE PHOTOS, click here, CLICK HERE



Did great white sharks evolve from makos or the mighty C. megalodon? How do researchers trace the great white's evolutionary path? What makes the deserts of Peru the perfect place for uncovering clues? What can such finds teach us, not only about ancient marine life, but ourselves?

Armed with a camera and an abundance of curiosity, paleo prospector Mark Renz joins Peruvian paleontologists on a journey into one of the driest regions on Earth, searching for big sharks and their food sources. At an elevation of 2,100 feet above sea level, the group discovers articulated primitive whales, dolphins and seals eroding away on the desert floor. The preservation is so remarkable that the impression of baleen in a 35 ft. whale is still perfectly intact. Through an unusual search method, Renz comes face-to- teeth with the a 10 million year-old mako shark.

There's science and old bones here, yes. But none of it is dry.

"DESERT SHARKS" 200 pg. PAPERBACK BOOK is vintage Renz: light but tasty science, sprinkled with a slightly warped view of the world. Includes several hundred black & white photos of fossil sharks, whales, dolphins and seals exposed in the desert, plus an ID section tracing the evolutionary path of an extinct mako shark as it slowly transforms into our contemporary great white. Renz takes the time to get to know his host country's proud people and affectionate canines, and leaves with a healthy respect for the nobility and warmth of both. PRICE: $19.95, plus $3 shipping in U.S., 6% additional for Florida residents.


FOREWORDS

A stunning feast for the eyes and imagination..."Desert Sharks" is more than just a tale of fossils, it is commentary on the human condition, one of ongoing wanderlust, adventure, and the quest for discovery. --Charles N. Ciampaglio, Ph.D, Associate Professor of Geology, Wright State University

Mark Renz has captured the spirit of these desert hills and brought to life in words and photographs the sharks, whales, and other animals that once inhabited the long-absent marine waters - and he has given long-overdue credit to the Peruvian paleontologists responsible for writing many of the chapters in the unfinished Pisco paleo-narrative. --Dr. Thomas DeVries, Associate, Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, Seattle, WA.

An excellent job... Mark Renz supports his work with scientific data and reveals the great potential Peru has for future exploration and study. The photographs alone are spectacular. --Dr. Gordon Hubbell, shark researcher

Mark Renz captures the passion that compels professionals and amateurs alike to explore the unknown and to unearth the past. --Sean B. Carroll, author of "Remarkable Creatures: Epic Adventures in the Search for the Origins of Species"




Paperback book


Author: Mark Renz
Illustrator: Marisa Renz
Publisher: University Press of Florida
Signed copies available through PaleoPress.
Price: 19.95 plus 3.75 shipping (U.S. only) and 6 percent sales tax (.90) for Florida residents. Overseas orders, please e-mail us for shipping price. Send check or money order to PaleoPress, 213 Lincoln Avenue, Lehigh Acres, FL 33972. Or for credit card orders, call 239-368-3252.

Paperback book


* Over 250 photos of author's Florida fossil finds, including sharks, whales, dolphins, mammoths, mastodons, sloths, camels, alligators, and horses.
* Shows where to look, how and when to look, and how to preserve your finds.
* Informative, humorous, written in layperson's words

For more information click here







 Author: Mark Renz
Illustrator: Marisa Renz
Publisher: PaleoPress
Release date: May 1, 2005

Paperback book, 263 pages, 800 B&W photos


Price: $24.95 plus 3.75 shipping/handling, and 6% sales tax for Florida residents. Send check to PaleoPress, 213 Lincoln Ave., Lehigh Acres, FL 33972, or call 239-368-3252 for credit card phone order.

Inquire by e-mail "fossilx@earthlink.net" for overseas orders.

FOR MORE PHOTOS AND INFO, CLICK HERE



Paperback book, 263 pages, 800 B&W photos


Avocational paleontologist Mark Renz stumbles onto a 500,000 year-old ancient Florida river bed and discovers dozens of skeletons of lumbering mammoth and mastodon elephants, bull-size ground sloths, llamas, old-world horses, pig-like peccaries, primitive wolves and deer. The discovery triggers many questions. Was it a major storm, flood, drought or plague that killed so many creatures at once? Or do their bones represent one animal dying every ten years for thousands of years? What signs do scientists look for to determine cause and time of death? What are the ethical considerations for amateur fossil hunters who come across such a site? How do you determine who to contact and how to excavate if given permission? Nearly 800 field photos offer tantalizing clues about how these animals lived and died.

From the Foreword: "All of the dedication and hard work by Renz and his crew, so richly displayed in these pages, has paid off bountifully in fossils from an interval of geologic time that was previously poorly known in Florida. Thanks to them, we now know much more than we did before about the animals that lived in Southwest Florida approximately 500,000 years ago." -- Dr. Richard C. Hulbert, Jr., Vertebrate Paleontology Collections Manager, Florida Museum of Natural History

FOR MORE PHOTOS AND INFORMATION, CLICK HERE





Author/Photographer: Mark Renz
Illustrator: Marisa Renz
Publisher: PaleoPress
Release date: November 15, 2008

85-page PDF book for imaginative kids 4-6 years old, or adults who think like kids.



Price: $9.95 call 239-368-3252 for credit card phone order.

Inquire by e-mail "fossilx@earthlink.net".



What does the town mayor do when he discovers a giant shark tooth in the local river where everyone swims? He calls the famous doggie detectives Coonie and Taz. Together the fearless and clever canines get to the bottom of the "Megalodon Mystery"!

An 85-page fun, fictional story that includes the basics of paleontology and geology. Actual photos of Coonie and Taz in the Peace River in Florida. Geared for kids 4-6 years-old or silly adults.

REVIEWS:

"Bone Gripping!" -- Dog World News

"Three woofs!" -- Canine Gazette

"Two Paws up!" -- Daily Barker


Illustrated paperback book, 127 pages, fiction, for young adults


Author: Mark Renz
Illustrators: Cover: Steve Bufter, Inside: Marisa Renz
Publisher: PaleoPress
Signed copies available
Price: 9.95 plus 3.75 shipping (U.S. only) and 6 percent sales tax (.90) for Florida residents. Overseas orders, please e-mail us for shipping price. Send check or money order to PaleoPress, 213 Lincoln Avenue, Lehigh Acres, FL 33972. Or for credit card orders, call 239-368-3252.

Illustrated paperback book, 127 pages, fiction, for young adults


WHO IS DOUG? An inquisitive dung beetle who meets weekly at the watering hole with Millie the mammoth, Cedric the camel, Herb the horse and Shutzal the sloth. Together, the five youngsters argue about such topics as thinking, happiness, specie-ism, religion, ethics, evolution, kindness, death, education, love, hunting, sports and the art of rolling the perfect dung ball. They may not provide us with all of life’s answers, but they sure pose a lot of intriguing questions.

FROM THE FOREWORDS:

A fascinating novel…inspired by a pile of dirt! - Dick Mol, Expedition Paleontologist, Discovery Channel‘s “Raising the Mammoth”

A clever version of the story of life…Seeing our modern-day world through the eyes and thoughts of these creatures living in a bygone era shows us our own present-day foibles in a less threatening context. Doug‘s world is our world. - David A. Zacharias, The Whitney Lab, University of Florida College of Medicine, Department of Neuroscience

I go on record to predict that Doug's Ark will be a least seller until discovered by religious fundamentalists and banned from school libraries. At that point, Renz's little iconoclast primer for young free thinkers will sell like Mad magazine to much the same crowd. - Ron Wiggins - Palm Beach Post

Doug surveys a world evolving, a place of terrible beauty and unending excitement . Recognize it? Aesop never told a more illuminating fable than Mark Renz spins here. -- Edward Morris, friend

For photos and book excerpts, or to order click here





Large Print


Artist: Marisa Renz


Publisher: PaleoPress

"Showing Reverence". Limited edition pencil rendering on high quality linen paper, 18" x 21.5". Modern artifact hidden in print.


Price: $25.00 plus 5.00 shipping/handling, and 6% sales tax for Florida residents.

Send check to PaleoPress, 213 Lincoln Ave., Lehigh Acres, FL 33972,
or call 239-368-3252 for credit card phone order.

Inquire by e-mail at "fossilx@earthlink.net" for overseas orders. Please do not send your credit card number by e-mail.

Large Print


"Showing Reverence". Limited edition pencil rendering on high quality linen paper, 18" x 21.5". Modern artifact hidden in print. When Marisa's husband Mark returned from volunteering for the Aucilla River Prehistory Project in Northern Florida, Marisa was inspired to draw the project's conclusions. According to scientists, this was the oldest butcher shop in North America, where some of Florida's first people killed and butchered a mammoth. Rather than depict Native Americans throwing spears at the animal, she chose to show a more reverent side to the kill. The body language of the men suggests they're saying, "We hated to take your life, but must if we are to provide food and clothes for our families."








PDF book, 150-plus pages, Nonfiction, except when dog is talking. Even then, I'm not sure.
Author and photographer: Mark Renz
Publisher: PaleoPress
Release date: August 2011
Price: 9.95



Sample Chapters - (geared for adults and young adults)








Our web sites include:
PaleoPress.net for books, Fossil Expeditions guide service,
Megalodon Expeditions guide service, and Florida Time Forgot (nature photography)