Short Synopsis
In the tradition of the bestselling Cod and The Secret Life of Lobsters, a lively, prizewinning travelogue through the history, literature, and lore of the king of the sea: the whale.

Full Synopsis
The whale is the largest, loudest, oldest animal ever to have existed. It is improbable, amazing, and—as anyone who has seen an underwater documentary or visited the display at the American Museum of Natural Historycan attest—a powerful source of wonder and delight to millions. The Whale is an extraordinary journey into the world of this fascinating and mysterious animal.

Acclaimed writer Philip Hoare visits the historic whale-hunting towns of New Bedford and Nantucket, wanders the streets of London and Liverpool in searchof Melville's whaling inspiration, and swims with sperm whales in the middle of the Atlantic. Through the course of his journey he explores the troubled history of man and whale; traces the whale's cultural history from Jonah to Moby-Dick, Pinocchio to Free Willy; and seeks to discover why these strange and beautifulanimals continue to exert such a powerful grip on our imagination.

A blend of the travel and nature writing in the tradition of Jonathan Raban and John McPhee, The Whale is a gripping voyage into the heart of Hoare's obsession—and ours.

"[A] gracefully written exploration of why whales fascinate us." ---Library Journal

"[An] eminently readable chronicle of the tragic interaction between humans and whales." ---Los Angeles Times

"This tour de force is a sensuous biography of the great mammals that range on and under Earth's oceans." ---Publishers Weekly Starred Review

"The Whale results from years of devoted researching, talking, kayaking, diving and swimming; it is equal parts almanac, literary study, celebration, elegy, eulogy and literary travel essay." ---The Washington Post

"A delightfully intimate and unapologetically personal engagement." ---Kirkus Starred Review

"Hoare transforms his obsession with these mammoth creatures into an intricate exploration of history, literature, and science." ---The Christian Science Monitor

"Michael Page delivers Hoare's meditations with an eloquent British accent, using just the right pace to move along this work of natural history." ---AudioFile

"Philip Hoare's The Whale is everything you want from a book. It is unpredictable and amusing and informative and original." ---Mark Kurlansky, author of the New York Times bestseller The Food of a Younger Land

Publishers Weekly Review

Kirkus Review