Whale Books for Younger Readers

These books make excellent read aloud picture/story books. Mostly nonscientific, fictional stories, all have beautiful illustrations or photographs.

Cameron, Anne. Orca's Song. Harbour Publishing Co., 1987. This unique book was written in traditional story-telling manner of the Pacific Northwest Native Americans.

Smyth, Karen C. Crystal: The Story of a Real Baby Whale. Downeast Books, 1986. A true story about the birth and first year of a North Atlantic humpback whale. A portion of the sale cost of this book is contributed to the Center for Coastal Studies, another whale research group in Massachusetts.

Steig, William. Amos and Boris. Farrar, Straus, and Girouzzx, 1971. A delightful story about the friendship between a mouse (Amos) and a whale (Boris).

McMillan, Bruce. Going on a Whale Watch. Scholastic Inc. 1992. A photographic journal of commonly observed behaviors from whale species of the Gulf of Maine over 10 whale-watching trips.

Grover, Wayne. Dolphin Adventure: A True Story. Greenwillow Books, 1990. The author's awe-inspiring account of his interaction with a pod of dolphins.

Callenbach, E. and Leefeldt, C. Humphrey, the Wayward Whale. Heyday Books, 1986. The unique story of a young humpback whale that wandered from off-shore into San Francisco Bay during October 1985 and his eventual return to the sea.

Goldner, K. and Vogal, C. Humphrey, the Wrong Way Whale. A short story about one of America's most famous whales.

Nobisso, Josephine. Shh! The Whale is Smiling. Green Tiger Press, 1992. A bedtime story told to a young boy by his elder sister about befriending a smiling whale.

James, Simon. My Friend Whale. Bantam Books, 1990. The story of a young child's interest and enthusiasm for whales and the friendship shared with one, which ends with a heart-wrenching message about preserving whales.

Sheldon, Dyan. The Whale's Song. Dial Books, 1990. A fanciful story about a young girl's fascination with the stories her grandmother tells her about the songs of whales and her quest to hear them for herself.

Wilson, Lynn. Baby Whale. Platt & Munk, 1991. This clearly written, beautifully illustrated book presents excellent facts about whales and is a great read aloud book for young children.

Benchley, Nathaniel. Kilroy and the Gull. Harper and Row, 1977. A story about the unique friendship between an orca and a gull.

Griggs, Tamar. There's a Sound in the Sea: A Child's Eye View of the Whale. Scrimshaw Press, 1975. A beautiful collection of paintings, drawings, poems and stories about whales done by children.

McClung, Robert. Thor, The Last of the Sperm Whales. Wm. Morrow & Co., 1971. A story of the life of a sperm whale from its birth until its 40th year.

James, Simon. Dear Mr. Blueberry. Maxwell Macmillan International Publishing Group, 1991. A delightful story about a young girl's correspondence with her teacher about a whale she sees in her backyard pond.