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sarahbythebook's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
3.5
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I expected more of a thrilling tale of harrowing escape. I got a psychedelic trip with a sentient whale and a young man capable is withstanding insane amounts of physical pain.
Whalefall is less about Jay’s struggles inside an aged sperm whale and more about his horrible relationship with his father, now totally lost to him due to suicide.
Was this the book I was expecting? No. But I did still enjoy it.
The oceanic science and research into whales is clearly well done. It’s easy to get a bit lost in the technicalities of diving equipment and marine life that sets the backdrop to Jay’s misadventure. Since the ocean freaks me out, I was expecting the thriller aspect to be a bit stronger, but the constant back and forth in time and the self-reflection broke that up in the first half. The second half flew by.
There were a few things that threw me off totally enjoying this book:
1. At some point, the human mind will shut down from pain and a person will pass out. The amount of injuries Jay sustains makes me think he would have been well past that point, making survival unlikely.
2. The sentient whale/dad was confusing and seemed like a step away from the careful research that went into whale biology. Not bad, just weird.
3. This boy needs therapy, and the experience in the whale does not take away from the horrid childhood Jay. I don’t like that the ending makes it seem like all is understood. And shame on his mom and sisters for pressuring and blaming him through the whole thing.
I expected more of a thrilling tale of harrowing escape. I got a psychedelic trip with a sentient whale and a young man capable is withstanding insane amounts of physical pain.
Whalefall is less about Jay’s struggles inside an aged sperm whale and more about his horrible relationship with his father, now totally lost to him due to suicide.
Was this the book I was expecting? No. But I did still enjoy it.
The oceanic science and research into whales is clearly well done. It’s easy to get a bit lost in the technicalities of diving equipment and marine life that sets the backdrop to Jay’s misadventure. Since the ocean freaks me out, I was expecting the thriller aspect to be a bit stronger, but the constant back and forth in time and the self-reflection broke that up in the first half. The second half flew by.
There were a few things that threw me off totally enjoying this book:
1. At some point, the human mind will shut down from pain and a person will pass out. The amount of injuries Jay sustains makes me think he would have been well past that point, making survival unlikely.
2. The sentient whale/dad was confusing and seemed like a step away from the careful research that went into whale biology. Not bad, just weird.
3. This boy needs therapy, and the experience in the whale does not take away from the horrid childhood Jay. I don’t like that the ending makes it seem like all is understood. And shame on his mom and sisters for pressuring and blaming him through the whole thing.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body shaming, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Alcoholism, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Suicide, Terminal illness, Vomit, and Grief
Minor: Pandemic/Epidemic
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