Exploring Where the Whales Live

theme: whales, conservation, oceans

Show Us Where You Live, Humpback 

by Beryl Young; illus. by Sakika Kikuchi 

40 pages; ages 3-7

Greystone Kids, 2021

Show us where you live, Humpback, in the warm waters of this southern bay.

This is the story of a whale and her calf, a child and their mom. The Humpback whale and her calf glide together, safe in their home. The child and mom run through a park, a place where the child feels safe.

The adult Humpback whale is the size of a school bus. One day her calf will be that big. The child is growing too – though will never reach school bus size! 

What I like about this book: It celebrates whales and our connection to them. Spread by spread the author compares – and contrasts – the whale calf and child. They both learn new things, but different things. They are growing stronger, each splashing in water and blowing bubbles. The whale leaps up, up, up! The child jumps high, too. 

Welcome Home, Whales 

by Christina Booth 

32 pages; ages 4-9

Blue Dot Kids Press, 2021

When I first heard her call, it came from the bay, echoing off the mountain like a whisper while the moon danced on the waves.

One child hears the whale, hears her call of joy and of sadness. The whale, a right whale, wanted to come home, but it did not feel safe,

What I like about this book: There is such a powerful feeling of caring in this book. Caring that can bring together people to make the world a safer, better place for right whales. The illustrations are soft and inviting. And there is wonderful back matter about right whales, where they live, and what those large white patches are called. There’s also a section about conservation efforts and what you can do to welcome whales back to their homes.

Beyond the Books:

Learn more about Humpback whales here and Right whales here.

Sing like a whale. Did you know Humpback whales make up their songs? You can hear a Humpback Whale song here. 

Make a whale out of a plastic milk jug. All you need to do is raid the recycle bin, rinse out the jug, and then use a sharpie to draw the mouth. When you cut the mouth open, the jug turns into a whale-scoop. Hot glue some eyes or use permanent markers to decorate. Here's how.

We’ll join Perfect Picture Book Friday once they resume. It’s a wonderful gathering where bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's website. Review copies provided by the publishers.