Song for a Whale
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- 12,00 kr
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- 12,00 kr
Publisher Description
The award-winning and USA Today bestselling story of a deaf girl's connection to a whale whose song can't be heard by his species, and the journey she takes to help him.
"Fascinating, brave, and tender...a triumph." --Katherine Applegate, Newbery Award-winning author of The One and Only Ivan
From fixing the class computer to repairing old radios, twelve-year-old Iris is a tech genius. But she's the only deaf person in her school, so people often treat her like she's not very smart. If you've ever felt like no one was listening to you, then you know how hard that can be.
When she learns about Blue 55, a real whale who is unable to speak to other whales, Iris understands how he must feel. Then she has an idea: she should invent a way to "sing" to him! But he's three thousand miles away. How will she play her song for him?
Full of heart and poignancy, this affecting story by sign language interpreter Lynne Kelly shows how a little determination can make big waves.
And make sure to read Lynne Kelly's next book and instant classic, The Secret Language of Birds!
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Twelve-year-old Iris was named for the whale that her grandparents had witnessed being beached on the same day the girl was born, presumably because the mammal wasn't able to navigate her way due to a hearing loss though, as Grandpa explains in ASL translated into text, "She wasn't born Deaf like we were." Iris zealously collects and repairs vintage radios, feeling vibrations on the speakers to discern "if a radio was playing music or crackling with static or sitting there like a box of rocks." Iris discovers a new passion after watching a documentary about Blue 55, a baleen whale who swims alone rather than in pods and sings at a frequency that renders his song unintelligible to other whales. She vows to use her electronics acumen to communicate with Blue 55 by creating a song that will "let him know he alone." Subtly and poignantly drawing a parallel between the girl and whale, Kelly (Chained), who has worked as a sign language interpreter, relays Iris's venture with credibility and urgency. The emotional current deepens as Iris mourns the sudden death of her grandfather her kindred spirit and witnesses the increasing aloofness of her once vibrant grandmother, who's also deaf. Kelly effectively interjects Blue 55's perspective into the narrative and adds an engrossing final note about the real-life whale who inspired the story. This finely crafted novel affectingly illuminates issues of loneliness, belonging, and the power of communication. Ages 8 12.)
