Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.63 AVERAGE
3.63 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
a huge comfort to me when my mum was sick. i love this book so much
This story is touching and heartbreaking and quite well-written for children around 4th to 6th grade level. Ella is in around second grade or so and has a rather tragic time of things. Her mother goes into a coma when she gives birth to Ella's baby brother leaving Ella with her newish step-father whom she does not really like much to care for both her and the new baby as they visit her mum daily in the hospital hoping that she will come out of the coma and get better. In the meantime, Ella also has to deal with a bully and the loss of her best friend at school. She occupies herself with studying whales and making a book about whales for her mother to enjoy when she comes out of her coma - if she ever does. I think that fans of Because of Winn Dixie and Where The Red Fern Grows will enjoy this book. I received this book free to review from Netgalley.
When Ella's mum goes into a coma after the birth of Ella's half brother, Ella has to deal with living with her stepfather, changing friendships and the uncertainty as to whether her mother will ever wake up.
A lot of the reviews I've seen say that this isn't a book about whales at all, but I disagree. Whales, and learning about them, are Ella's way of coping with everything that's happening to her. I mean, sure, Ella could have easily focused on, let's say, wolves or deer instead, but Jacqueline Wilson chose whales. Whales have a mysterious and almost romantic quality about them, so it is easy to see why they might captivate a child's imagination.
This was a sad book, and I am very glad I didn't read this whilst my own mother was still pregnant. It's not a book to calm nerves about that sort of thing! I teared up a couple of times whilst reading this, because it's just that type of book. Good on Jacqueline Wilson for dealing with the fact that pregancy is not always straight forward, though.
One of the things I enjoyed the most about this book was the character of Jack, Ella's stepdad. He is not a horrible, abusive stepdad, but, actually, he isn't great either. He has no idea how to treat Ella, or how to look after her, and sometimes he is actually kind of mean to her (though I don't think he means to be). I approve highly of multi-faceted characters in middle-grade fiction. :)
That goes for Ella too, actually. She could be the most horrific brat at times.
The only thing that bothered me about this book was the ending (and I'm beginning to notice a trend here, with me and endings to Jacqueline Wilson books). It was just so... wishy washy. It wasn't vague, not really, but it just kind of descended into some blah blah poetic prose. Gah. Way to ruin what could have been a very poignant moment.
However, I do recommend reading this book if you are a Jacqueline Wilson fan. It's one of her better newer ones. Just don't give it to a kid whose mother is about to have a baby, unless you want to frighten the hell out of them. o.o
A lot of the reviews I've seen say that this isn't a book about whales at all, but I disagree. Whales, and learning about them, are Ella's way of coping with everything that's happening to her. I mean, sure, Ella could have easily focused on, let's say, wolves or deer instead, but Jacqueline Wilson chose whales. Whales have a mysterious and almost romantic quality about them, so it is easy to see why they might captivate a child's imagination.
This was a sad book, and I am very glad I didn't read this whilst my own mother was still pregnant. It's not a book to calm nerves about that sort of thing! I teared up a couple of times whilst reading this, because it's just that type of book. Good on Jacqueline Wilson for dealing with the fact that pregancy is not always straight forward, though.
One of the things I enjoyed the most about this book was the character of Jack, Ella's stepdad. He is not a horrible, abusive stepdad, but, actually, he isn't great either. He has no idea how to treat Ella, or how to look after her, and sometimes he is actually kind of mean to her (though I don't think he means to be). I approve highly of multi-faceted characters in middle-grade fiction. :)
That goes for Ella too, actually. She could be the most horrific brat at times.
The only thing that bothered me about this book was the ending (and I'm beginning to notice a trend here, with me and endings to Jacqueline Wilson books). It was just so... wishy washy. It wasn't vague, not really, but it just kind of descended into some blah blah poetic prose. Gah. Way to ruin what could have been a very poignant moment.
However, I do recommend reading this book if you are a Jacqueline Wilson fan. It's one of her better newer ones. Just don't give it to a kid whose mother is about to have a baby, unless you want to frighten the hell out of them. o.o
3/5 Stars: ‘The Longest Whale Song’ by Jacqueline Wilson.
→ Age Range: Middle Grade.
→ Genre: Realism, Family Contemporary.
→ Trigger Warnings: Hospitalisation, Pregnancy Complications, Conflicted Relationships.
In-depth Rating:
→ Plot: ★★★
→ Character Development: ★★★
→ Setting: ★★
→ Entertainment Level: ★★★
→ Writing: ★★★
General Comments: Outdated Comments Removed; Star-Rating Stands.
Favourite Quote: N/A.
Time Read: Four Days.
→ Audiobook: No.
→ Audiobook Narrator: -
→ Age Range: Middle Grade.
→ Genre: Realism, Family Contemporary.
→ Trigger Warnings: Hospitalisation, Pregnancy Complications, Conflicted Relationships.
In-depth Rating:
→ Plot: ★★★
→ Character Development: ★★★
→ Setting: ★★
→ Entertainment Level: ★★★
→ Writing: ★★★
General Comments: Outdated Comments Removed; Star-Rating Stands.
Favourite Quote: N/A.
Time Read: Four Days.
→ Audiobook: No.
→ Audiobook Narrator: -
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
Started reading this after my daughter read a couple of pages to me.
Flippin' 'eck though, it's a bit rough. Don't read this if your emotional.
Flippin' 'eck though, it's a bit rough. Don't read this if your emotional.
Oy, my heart.
This is a beautiful, highly emotional middle-grade story about a girl whose mother slips into a coma while giving birth to her half-brother. Suddenly this girl, Ella, must cope with the absence and illness of her mother, a new baby brother, and being under the primary care of her stepfather (who she's pretty sure she doesn't like).
This is pretty much [b:Heartbeat|17258743|Heartbeat|Elizabeth Scott|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1381423076s/17258743.jpg|23853509] but for middle-grade. And British. And published first.
My heart got completely wound up in Ella and her stepdad, Jack, as they struggle to function together and deal with this enormous hole in their lives. But while the book provoked very emotional reactions from me, I never felt like it was completely bogged down in its own tragedy. Jack and Ella have the support of friends, and have "every day" things to cope with as well: work, school, etc.
And no, there's not that much about whales. It's a metaphor.
My only quibble comes at the very end where like, three lines should have been at least three paragraphs.
Thanks go to Netgalley for the electronic copy.
This is a beautiful, highly emotional middle-grade story about a girl whose mother slips into a coma while giving birth to her half-brother. Suddenly this girl, Ella, must cope with the absence and illness of her mother, a new baby brother, and being under the primary care of her stepfather (who she's pretty sure she doesn't like).
This is pretty much [b:Heartbeat|17258743|Heartbeat|Elizabeth Scott|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1381423076s/17258743.jpg|23853509] but for middle-grade. And British. And published first.
My heart got completely wound up in Ella and her stepdad, Jack, as they struggle to function together and deal with this enormous hole in their lives. But while the book provoked very emotional reactions from me, I never felt like it was completely bogged down in its own tragedy. Jack and Ella have the support of friends, and have "every day" things to cope with as well: work, school, etc.
And no, there's not that much about whales. It's a metaphor.
My only quibble comes at the very end where like, three lines should have been at least three paragraphs.
Thanks go to Netgalley for the electronic copy.
A really good book to help children understand the struggles of others and grow their empathy skills.
I read this because my cousins were trying to force me to watch a horror film (can't remember which) and I hated horror movies at the time, lol