Song For a Whale by Lynne Kelly - ESSENTIAL

Song For a Whale by Lynne Kelly, 292 pages. Random House, 2019. $8.

Content: G

BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS  - ESSENTIAL

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

Iris, 12, lives in Houston with her mom, dad and brother. Being deaf has never stopped her from doing what she wants. Iris is great at fixing electronics and she loves old radios. One day in class her science teacher shows a video of a whale called Blue 55. He is lonely because he could not communicate with other whales. Iris makes it her mission to learn all she can about Blue 55 and to find a way to communicate with him. She feels a special connection to this whale since they both have a hard time being understood by the ones around them. The story takes Iris, and her deaf grandmother, on a cross-country expedition to find Blue 55 so Iris can play her song for the whale.       

This is a heartwarming story of Iris, her grandmother and the whale. It gave me a glimpse into Iris' life and an understanding for what it would be like to be deaf. Iris never used her deafness stop her from doing what she believed in. She is talented, bright and inquisitive. She fixes radios even though she cannot hear them. She feels vibrations through her hands! She can tell if the sounds are clear or scurry and she makes adjustments until the sound is clear. I loved this book. The characters are believable and the story captivated me. I could not put the book down.            

Ellen-Anita, Librarian