Winner of the Robert F. Sibert Medal
Follow a blue whale’s enormous body to the bottom of the ocean, where it sets the stage for a bustling new ecosystem to flourish.
All living things must one day die, and Earth’s largest creature, the majestic blue whale, is no exception. But in nature, death is never a true ending. When this whale closes her eyes for the last time in her 90-year life, a process known as whale fall is just beginning. Her body will float to the surface, then slowly sink through the deep; from inflated behemoth to clean-picked skeleton, it will offer food and shelter at each stage to a vast diversity of organisms, over the course of a century and beyond.
Caldecott Medalist Jason Chin’s astonishing artwork enriches and amplifies engaging, well-researched text by
Bill Nye the Science Guy
writer Lynn Brunelle. Young lovers of the macabre will relish each page of
Life After Whale
. Meanwhile, those grappling with the hard subject of death will take solace in this honest look at the circle of life, which closes on a young whale enjoying the same waves as her ancestor. Additional back pages offer further info and reading recommendations on whales, whale falls, and ecosystems.
An Orbis Pictus Honor Book
A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection
One of Evanston Public Library's 101 Great Books for Kids
A Chicago Public Library Best Book of the Year
Winner of the Bank Street Children's Book Committee Flora Stieglitz Straus Award for Older Readers
An ALSC Notable Children's Book
A CLA Notable Children's Book in the Language Arts
An Evanston Public Library Blueberry Honor Book