The Tale of the Whale is a beautifully illustrated story of a child’s friendship with a whale. A delight to read aloud, its eco theme leaves plenty to discuss.
The rhyming, lyrical language carries us along on a journey through the oceans before the realization of the harm done by the plastic soup to the whale and other creatures – but the story ends on a hopeful and empowering note.
It’s a whaley good read!
Tracy Darnton is a keen reader and author of children’s and YA fiction, and a graduate of Bath Spa MA Writing for Young People, where she is now an Associate Lecturer.
Her latest novel Ready or Not is out in May 2022. It’s a thriller about a girl who goes missing during a game of hide-and-seek on holiday in Cornwall.
Her first YA novel The Truth About Lies is a thriller set on Dartmoor about a girl who remembers everything. Described by the Guardian as “thought-provoking and crisply written…an assured and charismatic debut”, The Truth About Lies was shortlisted for the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize 2019.
Tracy won the YA Short Story Prize run by Stripes and the Bookseller and was published in I’ll Be Home for Christmas. Her short story became the basis of her YA novel, The Rules, published in 2020, about a girl on the run from her prepper dad. Described by the FT as a “heart-thuddingly nervy thriller” , and The Irish Times said: “this tense, taut novel is chillingly believable”.
Tracy also enjoys writing for much younger children and a couple of picture books are being published shortly. She lives in a village near Bath.
Twitter @TracyDarnton
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Ooh, this sounds fantastic!
Great review, thanks for posting the pictures. Really makes a difference with picture book reviews. Will order for the store…
His books are a great way help kids read while soaking up important Science concepts without even knowing it. Ironically,…
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