From Booklist
The gray whale is probably the most watched of all the whales as their yearly migration along the Pacific coast brings them close to the many watchers on shore and in boats. Peterson, a nature writer, and Hogan, a Native American poet, spent seven years following the whales' migration and talking with people affected by the whales. The two voices of the authors are rendered in different type, with Hogan's more philosophical musing on the relationship between human and whale juxtaposed with Peterson's more reporterly presentation of gray whale natural history and of the people who interact with them. Starting with a visit to the calving grounds in San Ignacio Lagoon, Baja California, the authors socialize with the whales known as "friendlies" because they choose to approach people. Other sections follow the migration, showcase differing viewpoints on the Makah tribe's renewed hunting of whales and on aboriginal whaling in general, and discuss the summer home of the gray whales in the Arctic seas, where the whales feast and grow fat for their return journey south. Nancy Bent
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Book Description
For 50 million years, the gray whale has evolved along human shores, linking its history with human existence. Ancient and colossal, the gray whale weighs 45 tons and swims 10,000 miles along the West Coast each year from its Alaskan summer feeding grounds to winter birthing lagoons in Baja, Mexico. Proximity and beauty have made the gray whale a mysterious creature in the eyes of humans, sparking scientific wonder as well as many cultural and mythical interpretations.
In Sightings, Linda Hogan and Brenda Peterson have crafted a narrative that extends far beyond the two worlds of whales and people. A celebrated Chickasaw writer, Hogan traces the history of hunting whales for subsistence and explains their significance in tribal mythology and songs. Peterson, an acclaimed novelist and nature writer, focuses on the world of science, describing the interconnectedness of animal-human relationships and scientifically reinforcing Hogan’s assertion of the spiritual bond between people and whales. Together, they capture the realms in which the gray whale has become a legend, portraying the wonder—and fragility—of the whale and its environment.
Sightings is a story of tribal people, scientific researchers, fishermen, and the everyday inhabitants of the small, coastal communities whose lives are centered around the gray whale migration. A journey through water and time, Sightings is a masterful observation of one of the Earth’s most enchanting creatures.
Sightings: The Gray Whales' Mysterious Journey FROM THE PUBLISHER
On a Pacific Odyssey from Mexico to Alaska in pursuit of the mysterious gray whale, Linda Hogan and Brenda Peterson create a vivid and varied tapestry of poignant stories and plainspoken science. Their two voices, that of an award-winning Native American writer and an acclaimed novelist, essayist, and naturalist, interweave the diverse strands of legend and lore, science and symbolism, wonder and controversy inspired by the gray whales, which migrate 10,000 miles each year and have twice been hunted to the brink of extinction. The authors also address the three-way collision between the whales and their countless champions, the curtailed but still destructive whaling industry. and the tribal whaling rights of Native Americans in the Pacific Northwest who have resumed their traditional hunt. Sightings is a lyrical celebration of our eternally elusive yet irresistible kinship with the strange and surprising gray whale.
Art & Photography
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