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Whale Done
Whale Done
Stuart Gibbs | 2023 | Children, Mystery
5
5.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Message Drowns Out Plot
Teddy Fitzroy is on vacation again, this time in Malibu with his girlfriend, Summer McCracken, and Summer’s mother. They are visiting a friend of Mrs. McCracken who lives right on the beach in Southern California. Unfortunately, the beach stinks right now since a whale has beached itself and died. The head veterinarian from FunJungle is there as well, as he is planning to assist his friend who works for NOAA on the autopsy to find out exactly what happened to the whale, but before they can do that, the whale explodes. Obviously, someone is trying to hide something. Can Teddy figure out what is really happening?

Since the last book was also set away from FunJungle, I was disappointed we didn’t get to spend much time at the park again here. I did enjoy the LA setting since I live here, but it didn’t completely make up for missing the park and regular characters. The plot spends time speculating on why the whale died and why someone who want to hide their involvement, which turns into several lectures on how humans are destroying oceans. Yes, this is an important topic, but it took over and slowed down the story at times. On the other hand, Teddy once again makes some logical connections with great clues that figure things out in the end. The characters we meet along the way are fun, and I liked the development we got for Teddy and Summer. If you are new to the series, I suggest you start with an earlier book. Fans will still enjoy this one.
  
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Bob Dylan recommended Moby Dick in Books (curated)

 
Moby Dick
Moby Dick
3.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Favorite

"Moby Dick is a fascinating book, a book that’s filled with scenes of high drama and dramatic dialogue. The book makes demands on you. The plot is straightforward. The mysterious Captain Ahab—captain of a ship called the Pequod—an egomaniac with a peg leg pursuing his nemesis, the great white whale Moby Dick who took his leg. And he pursues him all the way from the Atlantic around the tip of Africa and into the Indian Ocean. He pursues the whale around both sides of the earth. It’s an abstract goal, nothing concrete or definite. He calls Moby the emperor, sees him as the embodiment of evil. Ahab’s got a wife and child back in Nantucket that he reminisces about now and again. You can anticipate what will happen."

Source
  
The Snail and the Whale
The Snail and the Whale
2019 | Adventure, Animation, Family
9
8.4 (12 Ratings)
TV Show Rating
It's Charm (0 more)
Couldn't fault it (0 more)
Another Julia Donaldson
This animation company saw great success animating the gruffalo, then the gruffalo's child and have continued the pattern until we are on Julia Donaldson's Snail and The Whale. Here we have characters true to the original illustrations gliding through incredibly animated water in this heartwarming story of a snail who lives on a rock but wants to see the world so gets a lift on the tail of a whale. It's made for small children and is full of innocence and charm and is very very watchable. What's makes Donaldson's books work is her charming simple stories but also her rhythm. The TV show keeps the rhythm but slows it right down to create a peaceful dream like film. They don't overcomplicated it, they just deliver the book and make it cute.