WHALEFALL

Submitted by Betty Wilson on
Author
DANIEL KRAUS
WHALEFALL

Jay's overbearing, ocean-loving father committed suicide after fighting a losing battle with cancer.  He and Jay had been estranged the last couple of years, but Jay has figured out a way to deal with his guilt and regain the respect of his mother and sisters.  Jay goes diving in the Pacific to find his father's remains and bring him home.  Thanks to his father's zealousness, Jay is a good diver, but he is totally unprepared for what happens when he gets tangled up with a giant squid that is being eaten by a massive sperm whale.  The book jacket says this is a "scientifically accurate" novel.  I can't argue with that because I know next to nothing about diving or whales, but I do think this was a good book.  It's an outrageous, original idea based on tales of yore, urban legend and things we see on the Internet.  Kraus' writing is lyrical, even when he's talking about guts and blubber.  Jay's struggle to survive is transcended only by his struggle to make peace with his father's memory.  This one was hard to put down.