Whale Nation (Poetry S.)

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Summary: Epic, Fact-Filled Prayer On Behalf of Whales
Review: This is a big, beautiful, lavishly illustrated love tribute to the whale species. About half the pages are for Williams' grand, celebratory poem--a poem of beauty and stark fact-- about whales, that includes history, biology, all the ways whales have enriched our society, both living and as a product, the tragic aspects regarding the thoughtless, non-sacred killing of the great beasts and details of hunting and processing, etc. Indeed, Williams' epic seems to include all aspects of the culture of the whale. The second half of the book contains hundreds of fascinating quotes about whales, culled from nearly every epoch of written human history, and serves the reader as a virtual encyclopedia about whales. The book is illustrated throughout with fine photographs, including beautiful full color photos of whales alive and well in their natural habitat, to photos depicting the myriad ways humans have exploited and profited from the whale. This is a good book, a song celebrating the sacredness of whales and lamenting our human society that has for the most part taken them for granted. This book is both a prayer and a textbook, celebrating whales with compassion and passion, and educating about whales with fascinating facts, history and photos. It is a work of art, both simple and grand.