Ice Whale

In her posthumous novel, celebrated children's nature writer Jean Craighead George introduces an enchanting tale set in 1848 Barrow, Alaska, where a young Eskimo boy witnesses the birth of a bowhead whale named Siku. When he inadvertently leads Yankee whalers to the whales, a curse of banishment befalls him, passed down through generations as Siku's spirit haunts his descendants. Ultimately, the curse is lifted when a daughter recognizes and saves the whale, leading to a profound connection between humans, animals, and the environment. Told through alternating voices of both human and whale, this ambitious narrative highlights themes of responsibility and redemption.