THE DAY THE WHALE CAME

When a train pulls into town carting a dead whale, the citizens of Johnstown, Illinois—one in a Model A—eagerly hand over their buffalo-head nickels and dimes to Captain Pinkney for a chance to view the dead behemoth. Tommy, who has read about whales, is nauseated by the spectacle, particularly when it turns out the whale is rotting and smelly. His friend, Ben, wants to cut off a hunk of the whale as a souvenir, intentions that spell the end of his and Tommy’s friendship. As the train is about to depart, the engine breaks down, and Captain Pinkney asks for the townspeople’s help in burying the smelly carcass. Tommy feels somewhat better about putting the whale to rest, but it isn’t until the following spring, when wild flowers flourish over the whale’s grave, that Tommy believes that its death is appeased. The language Bunting (December, 1997, etc.) uses is clear as ever, and the analogy of the story, that standing up for what you believe in is the same as sticking up for yourself, rings true. It’s just such an odd story, set in turn-of-the-century America, and made more peculiar by Menchin’s collage artwork (which, significantly, gives the dead whale a human eye). That a child would be sensitive to the whale’s plight may prove a timeless notion, but it feels more 1998 than 1920, the date on a nickel viewed close up. (Picture book. 6-10)