Zidrou

A poetic fable for grown-ups full of wisdom and beauty, by two Belgian masters of graphic storytelling.Out on the high seas lives a whale unlike any other, who spends her days reading stories to all who will listen, taken from the vast library hidden in her belly. When the whale bumps into a sea postman's boat one fateful night, it's the beginning of an extraordinary friendship. But not every story can have a happy ending...

The Whale Library

Elizabeth Hagenlocher

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. 

This book follows the story of a sea postman, who meets a 100,000 year old whale on his route one day. The two are kindred souls, in a sense. We also see his relationship with his wife, who is expecting. 

This is a quiet, introspective book, and a quick read to boot. I enjoyed the the opening pages immensely, about the importance of telling stories, and how the sea has no one to tell her stories for her. I think this, above all, is the theme. Especially in the end where we see that the whale's story and legacy carries on in ways she could not have prepared for or predicted, yet the man can only suspect what has happened. 

I enjoyed the intimacy of the artwork, and I think that part of the story, more than the words, affected me deeply. 

Also, this is flipping sad. I was not prepared.

Leonie

Please don’t get confused and believe that this is a children’s book. It certainly is not. There’s a sex scene is all I’m saying.

The story didn’t do much for me, mostly because I didn’t see any point in it. Nothing really happened and I also didn’t feel like there was any message it conveyed.

The art style is incredible though, and I’m rating the book 2 stars simply because of that.



[I received a free copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.]

The Whale Library

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