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Elin Kelsey

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Watching Giants: The Secret Lives of Whales Paperback – Illustrated, December 1, 2008

by Elin Kelsey (Author), Doc White (Photographer), Francois Gohier (Photographer)

4.1 19 ratings

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Personal, anecdotal, and highly engaging, Watching Giants opens a window on a world that seems quite like our own, yet is so different that understanding it pushes the very limits of our senses. Elin Kelsey's colorful first-person account, drawing from her rich, often humorous, everyday experiences as a mother, a woman, and a scientist, takes us to the incredibly productive waters of the Gulf of California and beyond, to oceans around the world. Kelsey brings us along as she talks to leading cetacean researchers and marine ecologists about their intriguing discoveries. We encounter humpback whales that build nets from bubbles, gain a disturbing maternal perspective on the dolphin-tuna issue, uncover intimate details about whale sex, and contemplate the meaning of the complex social networks that exist in the seas. What emerges alongside these fascinating snapshots of whale culture is a dizzying sense of the tremendous speed with which we are changing the oceans' ecosystems―through overfishing, noise pollution, even real estate development. Watching Giants introduces a world of immense interconnectivity and beauty―one that is now facing imminent peril.

Print length

214 pages
Language

English
Publisher

University of California Press
Publication date

December 1, 2008
Reading age

14 - 17 years
Dimensions

6 x 0.6 x 8 inches
ISBN-10

0520261585
ISBN-13

978-0520261587
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Nick Pyenson
431
Hardcover
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“An appealing, agitating foray into the world of whales that ignites both protective instincts and a hungry curiosity to know more.” ― Kirkus Reviews Published On: 2008-10-01

Cogent, compassionate . . . Brilliant at pursuing seemingly unrelated trails back down the blowhole, Kelsey illuminates the “humanity” of whales. ― Publishers Weekly Published On: 2008-12-01

“Engaging portrayal of the lives and culture of whales.” ― The Economist Published On: 2008-12-11

“Charming. . . . Will be of interest to all whale and dolphin watchers.” ― Choice Published On: 2009-05-01

From the Inside Flap

"In Watching Giants: The Secret Lives of Whales, Elin Kelsey provides an in depth look into one of the world's most magnificent creatures. I'm sure these stories will amaze and inspire you as they did me. A joy to read."--Jane Goodall, PhD, DBE, Founder, The Jane Goodall Institute & UN Messenger of Peace

"Watching Giants is a wonderful book about animals whose complex social relationships and deep emotional lives are difficult to observe and even more difficult to understand. I know for certain that after reading this book, others will learn as much about whales and their underwater environment as I did from traveling with Elin Kelsey."--Marc Bekoff, author of The Emotional Lives of Animals, Animals Matter, and Wild Justice: The Moral Lives of Animals

"Prepare to be immersed in a different world. Like sitting down to a long dinner with a delightful and erudite friend who is about to tell you everything you need to know about the ocean, this absorbing book will let you see the ocean and its creatures in a way that you never imagined possible."--Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson, author of When Elephants Weep: The Emotional Lives of Animals

"Watching Giants reads like dispatches from the frontiers of marine science, covering everything from homosexuality in dolphins to whale intelligence, culture, and conservation with extraordinary insight. Superbly written and highly recommended."--Erich Hoyt, Senior Fellow, Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society, and author of Creatures of the Deep

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ University of California Press; First Edition (December 1, 2008)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 214 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0520261585
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0520261587
Reading age ‏ : ‎ 14 - 17 years
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 12.8 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.6 x 8 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #3,369,201 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #938 in Mammal Zoology
- #1,578 in Marine Life
- #2,395 in Biology of Mammals

Customer Reviews:
4.1 19 ratings

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Elin Kelsey

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Elin Kelsey is a leading international spokesperson for hope and the environment. She is the award-winning author of more than a dozen environment and science-based books for children and adults. Her books have received rave reviews from the Economist, the Washington Post, Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Review and BrainPickings. Her work serves as an antidote to the hopelessness so many people all over the world feel about the state of the environment. Because science is based on problem analysis and the media focuses on tragedy, we rarely hear about conservation successes. Elin's passion for shifting the environmental narrative beyond doom and gloom has garnered her prestigious fellowships at the Rachel Carson Center for Environment and Society, the Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center, Hedgebrook, the Mesa Refuge and Berton House . On World Oceans Day in June 2014, she co-launched an #OceanOptimism hashtag and encouraged others to share their good news stories for the seas. The tag went viral reaching more than 70 million users to date and inspiring a broader Earth Optimism and Conservation Optimism movement.

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4.1 out of 5

19 global ratings

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kathowl

So much great info on whales-love it!

Reviewed in the United States on January 30, 2024

Verified Purchase

I loved whale watching in the past and have plans for this summer-great book to have with me!

Reviewed in the United States on December 12, 2013

Verified Purchase

A lot of books on the subject get too much into the global warming and enviro wack-job rants. This book is actually about whales. Of course it talks about the challenges facing the whales, seismic surveys and such, but it's focused on the whales, which is what I wanted! Great book from a good writer.

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Eric Hobart

Fascinating book - a must read for any ocean enthusiast

Reviewed in the United States on February 3, 2010

Verified Purchase

Elin Kelsey has taken a different approach to studying whales, and a different approach in writing this book. She seems to be a scientist utterly fascinated by the culture & psychology of whales - why else would she compare whale behavior to her own menopause or interactions with humans?

Having said that, I found that I could hardly put the book down - I only reluctantly laid it down at night when my eyes refused to stay open. I have long been fascinated by whales, but everything I've ever read before was superficial stuff - the fact that a blue whale weighs 100 tons, or that Gray whales like humans. It has been a long time since I was touched by a book the way I was touched by this one. As a child growing up in San Diego, I wanted to be a marine biologist. Many moves later, and finding myself living in the desert, I didn't pursue the dream - instead I focused on what seemed a more practical choice.

This book, however, has reinvigorated my interest in marine biology. There's no telling where it will take me, just like there's no telling what scientists will discover next about these fantastic mammals that populate our planet's oceans.

If for nothing more than general curiosity about the chapter titled "Let's talk about sex, Baby", pick up this book & read it - if you have any interest at all in these enormous creatures, you'll be well rewarded by reading this book.

7 people found this helpful

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A. Johnson

Fantastic Information, Compelling Stories...Buy It!

Reviewed in the United States on November 26, 2008

Verified Purchase

In Watching Giants, Elin Kelsey presents information gleaned from dozens of interviews with eminent scientists and other whale experts in an effort to make whales more understandable. This effort alone makes the book worth reading. But Ms. Kelsey extends her thinking much farther and communicates that understanding the lives of whales has implications for her as a human being, as a mother, as a responsible citizen of the Earth. In language that is accessible and highly personal, she conveys her belief that grasping the scope and scale of the lives of these ocean giants can inpire us to recognize our better selves. Some of the stories are funny; some are serious. All of them offer unique and remarkable perspectives on whales and life. Please read this book!

4 people found this helpful

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Cornelian Lass

Acutely disappointing.

Reviewed in the United States on October 21, 2010

Verified Purchase

Perhaps I misunderstood what this book was going to be about. I may not have read the reviews carefully enough. What I *thought* was that this book would be about the secret life of whales.

Sure, I learned something of the secret life of whales, but this was gleaned only after flipping through all the mind-numbing information on the author's children, Kip and Esme, how the honey-tongued local waiter tended to make women's thoughts leap instantly to sex, and what a trial it is to get a room in an inn when you don't speak much Spanish and they don't accept plastic. And so on and so forth.

I am not sure if Kelsey was trying to pad out the book, or adopt a girly coffee-time chat style (she called whale faeces whale 'poop', constantly, I could hardly bear it), or if she was trying to draw parallels between Kip and Esme's toileting habits and whales' 'poop'.

All I wanted was the whales. And I wanted an adult discussion of whales. Largely, I didn't get it. (Kelsey didn't have to talk down to me. Among many other examples, she didn't have to keep calling whale faeces whale 'poop'.)

Discussion of whales was largely confined to the Gulf of California, which was also acutely disappointing. Whales elsewhere are referred to, but why not include them in the overall discussion? I just felt that the author's wealth of knowledge was confined to one thing ... whales in the Gulf of California.

Kelsey also had a heavy conservation agenda. Many chapters/essays given over to her conservation agenda. This is fine, but I just wanted whales.

In summary, *not* a book on the secret life of whales, and possibly not even aimed at adults. Some whale life is discussed, but that only highlights its intense lack throughout most of the book.

I think the book should be re-titled, and I think the book's description should more adequately explain what this book is about. I also disliked the author's girly chatty style.

This was just not what I thought it was going to be. Acutely disappointing. If whales are what you want, be aware that much of this book is not about whales. I would not recommend it.

18 people found this helpful

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Erin Bishop

I loved this book

Reviewed in the United States on April 26, 2017

Verified Purchase

I loved this book! I found myself fascinated and intrigued by the information and narrative style. She makes a compelling case for how much we don't know about whales (or the ocean itself for that matter) and what we have to gain from protecting them and learning from them. Her personal reflections on her children and family life made me appreciate how personal experience can shape our professional interests. I was never bored, but endlessly fascinated. I was sad when it ended because I wanted to know so much more.

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Grace and favour

Delightful insight into the world of cetaceans and researchers

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 12, 2014

Verified Purchase

Wonderful to read the stories behind the facts; my job involves much reading, digesting and writing of 'animal facts' so it's been a pleasure to dig deeper beneath the headlines and discover more about the empirical research involved and the extraordinary behaviour of these fascinating animals. It is a book written with both scientific vigour and human compassion, and succeeds because it helps to break down the irritating divide that so many scientists insist on drawing up between 'us' and other animals.

steve Ancliffe

Not quite...

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 20, 2014

Verified Purchase

Was expecting something a little more about Whales, personally I find it dwells too much on location and the people involved,

M

The Female side

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 30, 2013

Verified Purchase

It dawned on me that the author's perceptions of whales was not just a feminist take but a clear view of cetaceans that has changed my world view.These strange and wonderful creatures like many other species are made of mainly female groups and that is profound. It has sadness in that it highlights the continuing plight of these beautiful animals but is full of such interesting detail and intriguing edge of knowledge that it is a splendid book to have.

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