Song for a Whale - an audiobook review

Song for a Whale

By Lynne Kelly 
Read by Abigail Revasch
Penguin Random House Audio, 2019

I reviewed Song for a Whale for AudioFile Magazine.  I can't reprint my review here in its entirety, but I've linked it, and do hope you'll read it. [https://www.audiofilemagazine.com/reviews/read/153293/]

There are not many middle grade books featuring deaf characters, and this one should be added to every library. Narrator, Abigail Revasch, and author, Lynne Kelly, convey in words and sounds what cannot be written or heard.  The song of a unique whale and the linguistic beauty of American Sign Language (ASL) are treated with wonder and reverence in this insightful glimpse into deaf culture.

Extra resources for Song for a Whale:

• Song for a Whale Educators' Guide
• Read an excerpt from Song for a Whale 
• Listen to an excerpt from Song for a Whale
• 
  

The author's notes on ASL and on the real whale that inspired this book were informative and likely to spark further interest in both topics. The author's notes are read by Lynne Kelly.

I know that I immediately went hunting for more information on the this unique whale.  Here's link to a Smithsonian article about the 52 Hz whale.

Picture Book Roundup - post Sandy edition

I'm getting back in the groove of normal life after a devastating hit by Hurricane Sandy. 

Here are some short and sweet reviews of books that I've had on my pile for weeks - no common theme - just great picture books!

These first two books are ones in which the illustrations steal the show and tell the story.

• Johnston, Tony. 2012. Laugh-Out Loud Baby. New York: Simon & Schuster. Illustrated by Stephen Gammell.

If this book doesn't make you smile, make you laugh, make you happy - well, I don't know what will.  The author's note regarding the Navajo celebration of a baby's first laugh is interesting.  I can think of few things better to celebrate. Go ahead, laugh!

• Fox, Mem. 2012. Tell Me About Your Day Today. New York: Beach Lane. Illustrated by Lauren Stringer.

A enjoyably repetitive, rhyming text that is filled in by cheerful step-by-step illustrations, detailing the busy day of a young boy and his favorite stuffed animals,

And Greedy Goose told him about her day -  the who,
the what,
the why,
and the way ...
the whole wild thing ...

turned out okay.

• Tarpley, Todd. 2012. Ten Tiny Toes. New York: Little Brown.  Illustrated by Marc Brown.

Into the world came ten tiny toes, a hundred times sweeter than one could suppose

A book for everyone who has ever kissed, and later missed a baby's ten tiny toes. Rhyming and sweet, this one would steal my heart even without illustrations!

Watch the book trailer for Ten Tiny Toes here.

• Kimmel, Eric A. 2012. Moby Dick: Chasing the Great White Whale. New York: Feiwel and Friends. Illustrated by Andrew Glass.

Moby Dick in a picture book for kids? Yes! This is not likely a book that young parents will pick off the shelf for a bedtime story, but it deserves an audience.  Eric Kimmel captures the essence of Melville's classic for a young audience, and he does it in rhyme, and he spares us the endless chapters on whales and whaling (sorry, it may be a classic, but those chapters are sheer drudgery).

Call me Ishmael ... When days start getting long again and time is moving slow, I set out for New Bedford town, a whaling for to go.

No important part of the story is missing, and while some of the rhymes are a bit forced, the overall effect of Kimmel's retelling, the book's generous size, and Andrew Glass' evocative paintings is striking.  An Author's Note and Glossary are included.  Hopefully, teachers will find a way to use this one.  View the Flickr slideshow of Andrew Glass' paintings for Moby Dick.

Earth

Earth
2009 DisneyNature Rated G

I must confess that I'm not usually a fan of Disney movies, but it would be impossible to find fault with the Earth Day release of DisneyNature's Earth. Narrated by James Earl Jones, Earth is a visually stunning celebration of our planet's most unspoiled places and their inhabitants. From the Arctic to the Antarctic, from the windswept African desert to the lush and exotic tropical rain forest, Earth follows the awe-inspiring migrations and life-cycles of elephants, cranes, humpback whales, buffalo, polar bears and more.

Family-friendly, Earth illustrates the cycle of life primarily through the hunt and chase, rather than the capture of prey (with the exception of the Great White shark, which by its nature, cannot be depicted with restraint). Only the night-vision scenes of confrontations between elephants and lions might frighten the youngest viewers. I was pleased at the number of families attending the early evening showing. There were as many children as adult in the audience, perhaps more.

Three suggestions if you're planning to see Earth (and I hope you are!)

1. See it at a theater with digital projection - the grainy quality of film detracts from the cinematography.

2. Choose a late evening showing unless you are prepared (or heartened) by choruses of "Look, Mommy! A lion!" "Look, Mommy! It's a giraffe!"

3. Stay for the credits.