WILD ABOUT WHALES

A swim with the cetacean clan adds another chapter to Davey’s long-running series of salutes to wild creatures.

The author/illustrator fills the spaces between narrative blocks with an abundance of sea life, providing full-body and close-up views of over two dozen types of whales as well as images of their prey, from tiny krill to eels, seals, squid, and sharks. In one to-scale scene, a diminutive scuba diver leads a parade of whales, from a massive blue on down, to demonstrate their great range of sizes and shapes; in another (not to scale), six very different-looking whales from a narwhal to a pink river dolphin go nose-to-nose in a literal face off. Elsewhere, sleek specimens twist, breach, hunt, or show off special features as the author lucidly lays out their shapes, behaviors, and unique qualities with a sure sense of what will catch the attention of his young audience. Readers wondering which animals are the loudest in the world, for instance, will find their answer here—and may be further gobsmacked to learn that not only do humpback whales sing an evolving chorus of moans, cries, and clicks, but orcas actually have regional accents. Following a few glimpses of whales in mythology, including an introduction to a ghostly Japanese “bone whale,” Davey closes with a plea to join international efforts to protect these rare and intelligent creatures.

A crowd-pleaser, both verbally and visually.