Eye of the Whale: Epic Passage from Baja to Siberia

The critics are right to rave about "Eye of the Whale" by Dick Russell. In it's plainest form, the book entails a synopsis of the legendary gray whale and it's journeys through Oregon, Washington, the shores of Monterey, Vancouver Island, the Bearing Sea, the Bering Strait (Alaska), and Sakhalin Island, a hot topic in recent news. One of the best explanations of the book I can find is when someone describes encountering a gray whale. "Especially when you looked at its eyes, you just knew it probably thought it was a boatload of those [people] who like to pet them" In this passage we see a lot of what the book is about: People encountering the majestic grays and suddenly have a new opinion of them. The book has many passage from Charles Melville Scammon, a nineteenth century whaler who brought gray whales to popularity, by nearly killing them all. He then turned naturalist, and studied the gray whale extensively, following them around the globe. Russell tells the story of retracing Scammon's steps and gaining a new perspective. What is so strong about the book is the writing. When I opened it I didn't think I was going have a thrill a minute, and I didn't. But, I was surprised of it's intricately weaved passages, interesting readers, telling a simple story, and making a strong point without yelling it at you. In this way, Russell has helped the grays greatly by encouraging whale conservation, and showing the many sides of being an endangered species. The books weaknesses were few and far between, in my opinion. I will say, sometimes the passages, though well worked out were a bit lengthy and could have been more concise. The largeness of the book is intimidating to some, but hopefully this review will help in the case that it isn't a hard read, and also it good to read in just sections, and good to have for reference. I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in saving a great thing and encouraging conservation of nature in your friends, neighbors, children, and yourself. It's not worded at a hard reading level, and offers great views into the world of the deep.

Dick Russell has produced an amazing chronicle of the life of the California Gray whale. This is a book that is not only important today but will hold a place of value and respect hundreds of years into the future. Sadly this book may most likely survive the species itself. I have spent over two decades studying and working to protect the Gray whale and I've lead four major conservation expeditons to protect the species. The first was in 1981 to Siberia, the 2nd and 3rd to Neah Bay in 98 and 99 to oppose the Makah whale hunt and the 4th to San Ignacio in 2000 to oppose the development of an industrial salt processing scheme that would have damaged the breeding and calving homes of the Grays. Dick Russell got all the facts right in the areas that I have intimate involvement with so I can safely assume that his facts in all other areas are equally investigated and thus correct. This is a wonderful story and it is a great work of historical documentation both natural,social and cultural. My life was changed by looking into the eye of a whale in 1975. I believe that Dick also caught a glimpse of the mystery, the majesty, the magic and the marvel of the mind of the whale reflected from the eye of one of these great and gentle giants. For only a person who has seen into the eye of a whale could have written such an insightful book. I intend to buy a dozen of Dick Russell's books for Christmas presents this year.

_Eye of the Whale: Epic Passage from Baja to Siberia_ (Simon andSchuster) by Dick Russell is a brilliant and comprehensive account notso much about the gray whale, but about how the humans and whales haveinteracted over the centuries, and especially in the past fewdecades. It is hard to imagine that there is any aspect of thissubject that Russell has not covered. The truly amazing part of thegray whale?s story is that it had a terrible reputation in thewhaler?s day. It was called a devilfish, and was viewed as adangerous quarry, especially when it was protecting its young. It hadto be approached with fear (and this was realized in the Japanesefisheries as well). It is a devilfish no longer. No one knows why, butsometime in the 1970s the behavior of the whales changed. Into thelagoons of Baja, the whales go in the winter to mate and to delivercalves. The whales started becoming interested in the humans that hadput out in their boats to see them. They presented themselves at thesurface, turning on their sides to point an eye up to look at thehumans that used to kill them for oil and meat, and for baleen tostiffen their corsets. They seemed to enjoy being scratched andtouched. Individual whales, returning year after year, seemed tospread the behavior, which has become the norm. They even nudge thecalves toward the boats to introduce the new arrivals into theactivity. All the eastern Pacific gray whales come to Baja in anannual migration from the Siberian-Alaskan waters where they feed. Itis a 13,000 mile round trip, the longest annual migration of anymammal, and Russell has traveled the length of that migration, andmore, to interview almost everyone who has researched the gray whaleor campaigned on its behalf. The result is a multifaceted,wide-ranging tale that takes in important stories about theinteraction of humans and grays. The Makah tribe in Washington resumedwhaling with a controversial kill in 1999, possibly of a whale thatthought they were friendly. They get support from the Japanese, whowant to bring whaling back in general. The area of lagoons where thewhales calve was in danger of becoming a giant salt productionfacility; Russell covers the anguish and triumphs of theenvironmentalists pitted against huge commercial and governmentalfoes. The grays have made a comeback, but seem to be less healthy; wedon?t know if we can blame warming of the waters or other causes, asresearch on the whales is only in the beginning stages. Best of all,though, is that the book is full of attempts to describe just whathappens between two species as they regard each other. "Once you geta chance to see these whales," says one observer, I think it is anatural reaction to fall in love with them. And to want to do theutmost so this continues to be a place where they can come and feelsafe and secure." Another: "The mother was just lying there as ifshe was watching the young one, and sometimes she came up and rockedthe front of the boat. I must say it was sometimes

For a truly remarkable experience, you must read this book!Mr. Russell has done exhaustive research, combined with his obvious talent, to create an epic that will define the world of the California gray whale for years to come.While opening your eyes to the life the gray whale, you will also- for the first time in print- discover the truth behind the Makah tribe's whale hunt.A highly recommended book- this will be the crowning jewel in your library for a very long time. For many years hence, this book will be THE defining work on the California gray whale.

If you believe the whales have been saved, you're sadly mistaken. Charles Scammon was an early whaler who discovered the gray whales' favored birthing spots in Baja's lagoons. This discovery led to a massive slaughter, nearly running them into extinction. Scammon was also a great naturalist who, after quitting whaling, published many fine writings. In Dick Russell's book, one has the opportunity to examine this ancient animal's past through Scammon's eyes as well as to learn the very newest information, which is not all good. Some scientists hoard their knowledge, some people who consider themselves experts are sorely out of date. New behavior we, and others, have documented has wanted for a holding vessel, a place to share this knowledge with the world. That is what Eye of the Whale is and it is spectacular. We spend our days with whales and so our knowledge comes with salt spray and sunburn. I would be surprised if, upon completion of this epic "vessel," you didn't find yourself tasting the salt and squinting from the sunlight reflected off sparkling waters. It IS that good.