YA Eco Mysteries, Memoirs, Novels & Travel
The Gray Whale's
Lament
An Eco Adventure
Book 2: Water
The Four Elements
Cli-Fi Trilogy
Purchase Book
The Gray Whale’s Lament: An Eco Adventure, follows three special teenagers who can communicate with endangered gray whales that are part of their lives, and the terrible threats they face. The teens must summon the courage to save the whales from harm caused by human-driven climate change, even at the risk of destroying their dreams for the future.
Outsider Alysie Muckpa, a Tlingit Native American, has a superpower to communicate with whales. When Natsilane the gray whale she has bonded with, washes up dead together with other whales, she must face the most important decision of her young life, save the whales that keep our oceans healthy, or risk destroying her dreams for the future. Determined to protect the whales from manmade dangers, Alysie teams with teens who live along the whales’ migration on the Pacific coast. Together with sensitive Sarah from San Francisco, and brave Macho from Baja Mexico, the three hatch daring schemes to save the endangered whales before it is too late. The teenagers from diverse backgrounds share a special connection for these intelligent mammals who communicate with one another through songs, and like trees, reduce the harmful effects of climate change. The three Eco warriors will need to summon extraordinary courage to face down powerful corporations fueling climate change and the fury of nature itself. But time is running out. The oceans are filling with plastic, Alaskan villages are flooding. The odds are stacked against them, but the three aren’t about to give up. Teens drawn to magical realism, science and adventure set in the natural world, will be entertained and inspired by The Whale's Lament. Environmental, literature teachers and librarians will find this story a springboard for lively discussions.
Book 2, WATER, of the Four Elements Cli-fi Trilogy.
Reviews
The Gray Whale’s Lament made me tear up. I so enjoyed this story. Whales have always been a cause of mine. I taught a unit on them. We simply must save them. I will definitely be sending this book to many of my grandchildren and teacher friends.—Alma Huston. Retired principal, and high school teacher. Alma is passionate about environmental education.
I often think of whales and that so much research continues to elucidate what sentient creatures they are. I wonder if they will ever be able to “forgive” us for all the abuses we have directed at them. —Roger Birkhead. State Department of Education Biology Specialist for the Auburn University region of the Alabama Science In Motion program.
I throughly enjoyed the fun interplay between the three teens. The whale descriptions, local flora and fauna are all accurate and clearly well researched. And I loved that each of the teens found some way to help whales. Such a message can have a powerful impact on young readers and the young at heart concerned about the environment and inspire small scale eco-conservation/justice projects to improve or benefit their corner of the world. Bravo on another cleverly crafted contribution to the young adult literature!—Maggie Amsler, marine biologist, is a part of Antarctica's history. Because of her important contributions to Antarctic science since 1980, Maggie and her husband Chuck Amsler were honored by the US Board of Geographic names with the designation of Amsler Island, in the Antarctic.
Claire Datnow’s new Eco adventure for young adults does not disappoint. Once again, she intertwines the fate of a threatened species (the gray whales) with the lives of three teenagers who come to realize that they must take action, however small, to focus attention on the threat to these magnificent marine creatures. The three teens come from very different backgrounds, from the indigenous people of Alaska, from the suburban environment of the San Francisco area, and from the lagoons of the Baja California of Mexico where the gray whales come to give birth. In spite of their differences, they are brought together in friendships which will give purpose to their already busy lives as they raise awareness of the plight of the whales, the part played by shipping and the danger posed by the growing volume of chemicals and plastic in the oceans. As always, Ms. Datnow’s research is impeccable, and will inspire teenagers to learn more about the ecological issues we are leaving to their generation. — Ann Morrison-Low, Librarian.
