A Banggai Cardinalfish book sneak peek – the opening spread for the Appearance & Anatomy chapter, featuring artwork by project artist Karen Talbot. A year ago, I was preparing for a trip to Indonesia to immerse myself in the world of a small reef fish called the Banggai cardinalfish with the intent of contributing to an important book on the species. Editor James Lawrence recently sent me a revised copy of the manuscript (including some absolutely stunning layouts shown here), and it has me thinking back over the past year and the places this project has taken me both physically and intellectually. It also has me thinking about getting the book into your hands! Taking the Time to Get it Right While travelling halfway around the world to better understand a fish and its relationship to its environment and the fishers who interact with it is something to which I am not unaccustomed in my line of work, there was (and remains) something different—something very special—about the Banngai cardinalfish project. For one, it has been a much larger project than any of us anticipated, and the challenges along the way have been significant. From lengthy delays in getting the science done right to dealing with our own losses of broodstock secondary to the very virus about which we were writing, everything seemed to take twice as long as expected. Having said that, what we have learned has reinforced the importance of embarking on the Project in the first place. We have made the internal decision to take the time to do it right, and while we know the delay is frustrating, we think the final product (which is now over 300 pages–about 35% more than projected!) will more than justify our decision. As you know, we had originally planned on having the book MORE: Better Late Than Never: Banggai Cardinalfish Book to Debut Soon