The Lost Whale

Hannah Gold’s book The Last Bear was well received critically and indeed, has just been awarded the Waterstone’s Children’s Book Prize. Her follow-up, The Lost Whale, is another beautifully written adventure detailing a deep, almost magical connection between a child and a wild animal, in this instance a grey whale. Once again, Gold delivers a strong environmental message, describing the threats to whales from shipping, plastic in the oceans and deadly fishing nets dumped from trawlers; however, the whale is as much a saviour to central character Leo, as he is to her.

Rio, eleven years old, has been sent to California to stay with the grandmother he has never met while his mother is in hospital. It’s clear to adult readers, and probably will be to many young readers, that his mother is in a mental health crisis and that he has been trying to care for her, alone, for some time. Rio is angry, lonely, desperate to see his mother well again. There is some respite for him, thanks to a friendship with a local girl, Marina, and her father. They run whale watching trips on their boat and Rio is fascinated by the whales. He’s amazed to recognise one female grey whale – could it be White Beak, the whale his mother sketched when she was his age? As the story unfolds, there are close encounters with White Beak – illustrated with drama and tenderness by Levi Pinfold – and an extraordinary relationship develops between the two. When White Beak needs his help, Rio is able to save her, but his actions open up possibilities of change for him and his mother too. The story acknowledges the weight of the problems we face, but allows for hope and recovery through bravery, love and harmony with nature. Rio’s distress is balanced by descriptions of the wild life of the whales and porpoises, while the boom of the sea rolls throughout, a dazzling unifying theme.