National bestseller Doug Abrams delivers a captivating ecological thriller about a marine biologist whose fate is altered after the unexpected a... read full description
reviews
Jul 31, 2010
Malcolm
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The novel, Eye of the Whale, by Douglas Carlton Abrams is an ambitious book with broad objectives. On one hand, it is a story about a marine biologist entangled in corporate and political struggles regarding a humpback whale that has strayed into the Sacramento River. On the other hand, the novel is a primer on the effects that man-made pollutants are currently having on the oceans and most disturbingly, on the incidences of birth defects and cancer. The novel succeeds handily at both aims.
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Sep 20, 2009
Mishel
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Elizabeth McKay, a marine biologist, is currently working on her PhD thesis. She plans on discussing humpback whale communication and how their songs relate to their behavior. The passion she has for the whales she studies is clearly expressed in Abrams writing. She's so deep into her research that her personal life along with her marriage is starting to fail. And it doesn't help when Elizabeth discovers an impossible change in the whale's song from a humpack that swims up the Sacramento River.
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Aug 24, 2009
Cinnamon
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I wasn’t prepared for a story so moving when I first picked up EYE OF THE WHALE: A NOVEL by Douglas Carlton Abrams. The premise of the book sounded good and I had a feeling that it would be interesting, but I certainly wasn’t expecting something that would invade my dreams and keep me up at night! EYE OF THE WHALE was a great story about humans and our interaction with the world we live in. I would recommend it to anyone looking for a book that will really engage you and make you think.
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Aug 19, 2009
Nely
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Elizabeth McKay is a Marine Biologist who is working on completing her PHD with a thesis of deciphering humpback whale communication. These whales’ song, the most complex in nature, may in fact reveal secrets about the animal world that no one could have imagined. When a humpback whale makes its way up the Sacramento River with an unprecedented song, it is up to Elizabeth to save the whale - but little did she know the price of her endeavor. For as the story of the whale starts capturing the med
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Aug 03, 2009
Julie
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http://greenphillyblog.com/2009/08/03/ey...
Looking for a capturing read that you can’t put down?
No, I’m not talking about the Twilight series. I’ve been recommending Eye of the Whale by Douglas Carlton Abrams to many friends and family members.
The story follows Elizabeth McKay, a marine biologist who is finishing her PHD program with a thesis of cracking humpback whale communication. When a humpback swims up the Sacramento River with an unprecedented song, More...
Looking for a capturing read that you can’t put down?
No, I’m not talking about the Twilight series. I’ve been recommending Eye of the Whale by Douglas Carlton Abrams to many friends and family members.
The story follows Elizabeth McKay, a marine biologist who is finishing her PHD program with a thesis of cracking humpback whale communication. When a humpback swims up the Sacramento River with an unprecedented song, More...
Dec 23, 2010
Tiffany
rated it: 
I've been describing this book as an ecological thriller when people ask me what it's about. There's environmentalism, science, suspense, espionage, violence, love, jealousy. It's not an amazing work of literature by any means. There's no beautiful prose, no compelling characters, and it's a rather jumpy reading experience when it comes to pov--more suited to film than a book, I think. BUT if you're at all interested in the effect of man-made chemicals on the health of sea life and human life, i
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Jun 21, 2011
Bailey
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This book has an excellent heroine, strong and smart. The story itself is also excellent. You really feel for the whales, and it's hard not to wonder how we can still hunt them today.
I'm less certain about the conclusions about endocrine disrupters. I suppose I'll have to look into it further. I always hate to take my facts from novels.
As a grad student at UC Davis, the setting for parts of this novel, I had to wonder whether my institution could possibly act the way it doe More...
I'm less certain about the conclusions about endocrine disrupters. I suppose I'll have to look into it further. I always hate to take my facts from novels.
As a grad student at UC Davis, the setting for parts of this novel, I had to wonder whether my institution could possibly act the way it doe More...
Nov 08, 2009
Nathan
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This was horrible. The plot is a mangy hybrid of harlequin romance, guilt-tripping eco-drivel and 'oh-look-how-much-I-know-about-whales' exposition, taped loosely together with the most generic and uninteresting of plots. This is a novel with a message, which is all well and good, but the message is couched in weak writing and delivers itself with all the subtle finesse of a drunken baboon. The resolution is straight out of grade-B animal attack movies (cartoonishly diabolical villain messily de
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Feb 06, 2011
Kathleen
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There were parts of this book that were a little "Lifetime Movie". However, the voices of each character reached out of the pages and drew you in.....I believe in animal communication, so this was not a stretch for me. There were many people in this story and not one was a waste. Gosh, I am so blessed that I love to read. If I didn't I would miss gems like this. Thank you Mr Abrams, keep up the good works.
Feb 11, 2012
g-na
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This is a novel about a San Francisco Bay Area biologist studying humpback whales, but then but the biologist and an individual whale get into trouble and there the drama gets thick. You'd think I would like a book like this but I think I'm too close to the situation (considering my work with marine mammals and conservation) for it to seem "right." To me the plot seemed a bit forced.
Jan 12, 2011
Amber
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Just finished Eye of the Whale and thoroughly enjoyed it. I can't remember the last time I stayed up so late to keep reading a novel. So many emotions felt during this page-turning journey. It was beautiful, sad, exciting, and moving. Loved every word. I also truly appreciated the amount of truth and clarity woven in to this important book.
Jun 16, 2010
Stephanie
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I loved this book!! Being an animal lover and a fiction lover this was the perfect combination. It is a fictional account of a marine biologist versus the Japanese whaling industry. Once you get past the sadness of the first few chapters, it becomes a great read. A page-turner of a different kind. I had to remind myself it was not real. Must read.
Feb 22, 2010
Lynda
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An intriguing book wrapping the factual problem of man polluting the environment into a fictional account of a scientist's mission to prove language among killer whales. And what those whales have to say about what is happening to their ocean's should make everyone sit up and listen. Let's just say I will NEVER buy another plastic bottle of water!
Sep 29, 2010
Liza
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This book is silly. It's so silly that I can't even feel offended that the protagonist is "half–Native American, half-Jewish" with dark braids and blue eyes. Yeah, seriously. The author states in the acknowledgments that he based her "unusual heritage" on his friend. So it's okay then? No. And blue eyes? Really? Why not just go for the genetic jackpot and give her red hair, too.
So this book is silly. But if you're interested in cetaceans, activism, acoustics, commu More...
So this book is silly. But if you're interested in cetaceans, activism, acoustics, commu More...
Feb 19, 2011
Shomeret
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This eco-thriller is a suspenseful page turner with amazing characters. It reminded me of a documentary I saw last year called The Cove dealing with the slaughter of dolphins by a Japanese village because the powers that be did everything they could to intimidate or discredit the people that made that documentary, just as they did with marine biologist Elizabeth McKay, the central character of this novel.
Eye of the Whale is an extremely message driven book. Normally I like my fictio More...
Eye of the Whale is an extremely message driven book. Normally I like my fictio More...
Aug 11, 2010
Linda
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Easier to digest facts wrapped in fiction...even despite the dramatic indulgences.
Feb 21, 2011
Ayelet
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Fantastic book... It's interesting and gives a lot if info about the plight of the whales without being preachy or dry.
Dec 11, 2010
Edward
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A combination of the documentary "The Cove" and "Erin Brokovich". A little to fantastic for me, I was looking for some more realistic characters, but found stereotypical evil Japanese and lazy Caribbean Islanders.
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