100,000+ Books, Games & Puzzles in-stock 🇳🇿

Fast overnight NZ delivery 🚀 Don't forget Father's Day is this Sunday 📅

Why Fish Don't Exist

A Story of Finding Our Way in a Chaotic World
By Lulu Miller
0.0 (0 reviews)
4.13 goodreads logo

Ratings/reviews counts are updated frequently.

Check link for latest rating. ( 58,476 ratings, 9,405 reviews)
Brief Description
LONGLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR NON-FICTION 2025 When Lulu Miller's relationship falls apart, she turns to an unlikely figure for guidance—the 19th-century naturalist, David Starr Jordan. Pouring over his diaries, Lulu discovers a man obsessed with nature's hidden order, devoted to studying shimmering scales and... Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$3799
AVAILABLE WITH SUPPLIER Ships from our Auckland warehouse within 4-6 weeks

Found a better price? Request a price match

The quirky and profound international bestseller - at once a life-affirming memoir on how to live well in a world governed by chaos, and a darkly astonishing scientific biography

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description
LONGLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR NON-FICTION 2025

When Lulu Miller's relationship falls apart, she turns to an unlikely figure for guidance—the 19th-century naturalist, David Starr Jordan. Pouring over his diaries, Lulu discovers a man obsessed with nature's hidden order, devoted to studying shimmering scales and sailing the world in search of new species of fish.

After the 1906 San Francisco earthquake sends more than a thousand of Jordan's specimens, housed in glass jars, plummeting to the ground, his story of resilience leads Lulu to believe she has found the antidote to life's unpredictability. But lurking behind the tale of this great taxonomist lies a darker story waiting to be told: one about the human cost of attempting to define the form of things unknown.

An idiosyncratic, personal approach to this fascinating scientific biography, Why Fish Don't Exist is an astonishing tale of newfound love, scientific discovery and how to live well in a world governed by chaos.

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781805331926

Publisher: Pushkin Press

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 10 October 2024

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: ONE

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Width: 135.0mm

Height: 216.0mm

Weight: 250g

Pages: 256

Collections

Biography & Memoir Education & Reference Lulu Miller Non-Fiction Science & Nature Science & Technology Biographies

About the Author

Lulu Miller is the cohost of Radiolab, host of the kids podcast Terrestrials, and author of the bestselling book Why Fish Don't Exist.

Also by Lulu Miller

View all
  • Trucky Roads
    A Kirkus Reviews Best Picture Book of the Year The city is a busy place and home to many kinds of trucks in this “gloriously bright, inventive world on wheels” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review) tale about all the trucks on the road—big, small, real and imagined!Trucky Roads sees all kinds of trucks, and when he imagines the kinds of trucks...
    By Lulu Miller
    Hardback
    $2899
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • Why Fish Don'T Exist
    A Best Book of 2020: The Washington Post NPR Chicago Tribune * Smithsonian A "remarkable" (Los Angeles Times), "seductive" (The Wall Street Journal) debut from the new cohost of Radiolab, Why Fish Don't Exist is a dark and astonishing tale of love, chaos, scientific obsession, and—possibly—even murder.​ "At one point, Miller dives into the ocean into a school of fish...comes...
    By Lulu Miller and MILLER LULU
    Paperback
    $5100
    Available
    Ships in 2-3 weeks
  • Why Fish Don't Exist
    Longlisted for the Women's Prize for Non-Fiction 2025: the profound and life-affirming memoir about finding our way in a chaotic world'A sumptuous, surprising, dark delight' Carmen Maria Machado'Fast-moving, deftly balanced, full of surprises' Guardian's Book of the Day'A bold and original blend of memoir and science' Elizabeth BuchananIf fish don't exist, what else do we have wrong?As a child, Lulu...
    By Lulu Miller
    Paperback
    Sold Out
  • Why Fish Don't Exist
    LONGLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR NON-FICTION 2025 'A sumptuous, surprising, dark delight' Carmen Maria Machado 'Genre-defying . . . fast-moving, deftly balanced, full of surprises' Guardian's Books of the Day 'Her book took me to strange depths I never imagined, and I was smitten' New York Times Book Review 'A magical hybrid of science, portraiture and memoir' Susan Orlean...
    By Lulu Miller
    Hardback
    Sold Out

More from Biography & Memoir

View all
  • This Angry Pen of Mine
    This Angry Pen of Mine by Layne Staley invites you to dive into the untold creative world of Layne Staley, the legendary voice behind Alice in Chains. This extraordinary collection showcases his handwritten lyrics, deeply personal poetry, stunning original artwork, rare photos, fan tributes, and so much more. Step into the world of Layne Staley like never before. For the...
    By Layne Staley
    Hardback
    $7299
    Elsewhere:
    $8999
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Lizzy's Pick Lizzy's Pick
    Famesick
    Chronicling the tumultuous decade between the premiere of Girls to her 2021 shotgun wedding (minus the baby, because she has no uterus), Lena Dunham takes us through her journey with her trademark mix of humor, unsparing honesty, and keen eye for detail. We peek behind the scenes - of her work, her family, her relationships, and her battle to reclaim her body...
    By Lena Dunham
    Paperback
    $3299
    Elsewhere:
    $3500
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Book cover for 'Swan Song: Diana, my sister' by Charles Spencer, featuring a black-and-white portrait of Diana with white and gold text on a gray background.
    Pre-order
    Swan Song
    Beautiful. Beloved. Hunted. The extraordinary life and death of Diana, as told by her brother, Charles – available to pre-order now. ‘When asked, ‘What was it like, growing up with Diana?’, my first thought is always, But I don’t know what it was like not to grow up with her…’ In September 1997, Charles Spencer stood in Westminster Abbey before...
    By Charles Spencer
    Hardback
    $5499
    Elsewhere:
    $6500
    Pre-order
    Out 23 Sep 2026
  • Dogs, Boys and Other Things I've Cried About
    From the social media superstar behind @SimonSits, Isabel Klee--known for her heartwarming tales of dog rescue--comes an utterly winning memoir about a twentysomething woman's search for true love in New York City and the dogs who helped her find it. A Jersey girl by birth, Isabel Klee had always wanted to live in New York City. At age 20, she...
    By Isabel Klee
    Paperback
    $3299
    Elsewhere:
    $3999
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Signed Copy
    Shirl's Pick Shirl's Pick
    Stakes
    Read our interview with author Noelle McCarthy! A darkly funny, sparkling follow-up to the author’s bestselling memoir Grand. You have to invite him in. You have to want the vampire’s badness in the house with you. Growing up in Catholic Ireland, Noelle McCarthy is captivated by Bram Stoker’s Dracula. The vampire is a risk-free fantasy, a suave alternative to the fraught realities...
    By Noelle McCarthy
    Paperback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $4000
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Built for This
    Raised among strong women, butcher's benches, and hard ideas about what men are meant to be, Brad Poulter grows up knowing he's different long before he has the words for it. But in late '90s small-town New Zealand, 'different' isn't discussed, it's managed. Joining the Royal New Zealand Navy offers escape, certainty, and belonging. The rules are clear, the uniform...
    By Brad Poulter
    Paperback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Even the Good Girls Will Cry
    Thanks to a thrown beer bottle and a fan letter to a P.O. box, Melissa Auf der Maur's first band scored an opening slot for the Smashing Pumpkins in her bohemian home town, Montreal. Sensing Melissa's talent, Billy Corgan recommended her to Courtney Love. Whisked from her local scene, Melissa joined Hole just after the deaths of Kurt Cobain and...
    By Melissa Auf der Maur
    Paperback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $3999
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • New Release
    An Ocean and a Day
    An utterly riveting, moving and poignant memoir of grief and loss that will speak to anyone who's ever lost someone they love. An Ocean and a Day is Hannah Richell's personal account of losing her husband, Matt, in a surfing accident on Tamarama beach in 2014. It is the story of the grief journey she travelled over the first two...
    By Hannah Richell
    Paperback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • New Release
    A Place to Stand
    A Place to Stand by Clare Ward is a profound memoir that delves into the life of a country doctor living and working in the Hokianga Harbour area in the far north of Aotearoa New Zealand. This region is sparsely populated and poses numerous health challenges. This thoughtful account details Clare’s thirty-year career, highlighting the people she works with and...
    By Clare Ward
    Hardback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Rule of Lies
    Written with all the pace and energy of a John Grisham novel … An incredible true story and a great read! BILL BROWDER, author of Red Notice and Freezing Order An American lawyer’s brilliant, propulsive story of witnessing and playing a part in the transformation of Russia under Yeltsin and Putin. A true tale of fascinating personalities, criminal intrigue, harrowing...
    By Jamison R. Firestone
    Paperback
    $2999
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Rory
    The New York Times bestseller The #1 Irish Times bestseller The definitive biography of Rory McIlroy, the most important, popular and confounding player of the post-Tiger era. Rory McIlroy contains multitudes. The child of a working-class family from a small town in a war-torn homeland now commutes to work in his own private jet and counts billionaires as confidants. He can overwhelm a golf...
    By Alan Shipnuck
    Paperback
    $3699
    Elsewhere:
    $4199
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Te Kaikaukau | The Swimmer
    Novelist, memoirist and playwright Witi Ihimaera – author of Pounamu, Pounamu and The Whale Rider – decided, at the age of eighty, to dive back into the water and spend a year full-time at Te Wānanga Takiura, immersing himself in his own language, in te reo Māori. This book tells the story of this kaikaukau, this swimmer, and his year...
    By Witi Ihimaera Smiler
    Paperback
    $3500
    Elsewhere:
    $4500
    In Stock
    Ships today

Why buy from us?

Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!

Service & Delivery

Service & Delivery

Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 100,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.

Auckland Bookstore

Auckland Bookstore

We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.

Our Gifting Service

Our Gifting Service

Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.

Biography & Memoir lists from the team

Explore our curated lists from our heroes to find your next read!

The Latest at Book Hero

View all