Charlie’s Whale

Charlie’s Whale by Libby Gleeson, illustrated by Hannah Sommerville (Lothian Children’s Books) HB ISBN9780734420886

Reviewed by Kathleen Grace

This is a highly imaginative book about a small boy, Charlie, who loves whales and goes in search of them. Charlie loves all things associated with the sea, from seashells to seahorses, sharks, and stingrays, but it’s whales that are his main love. He looks up about whales in books and on the internet and writes about them in his project book. While his brothers build towers of blocks, Charlie reads stories from his sea books and sings songs to his collection of sea toys. His brothers say he is dreaming when he expresses his interest in seeing a whale.

There are no whales at the aquarium when Charlie’s family goes to visit. When Mum says that whales will be too far out to sea, in the deep ocean, Charlie practises spotting things far away. Without success. It’s only on a visit to the seaside that one day there’s a whale…

Award-winning children’s author Gleeson uses language which stays in the reader’s mind (‘He closed his eyes tightly and saw the darkness of the deep, deep ocean. Huge whales moved with a gentle swish of their giant tales.’) Her poetic writing is accompanied by eye-catching, beautiful illustrations which capture the main character and his family as well as sea creatures. This is a picture book which is likely to interest children from ages 5+.