162 books
—
69 voters
Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read.
Start by marking “Humphrey the Lost Whale” as Want to Read:
Humphrey the Lost Whale
by
The true story of Wrong Way Humphrey
Get A Copy
Paperback, 32 pages
Published
December 1st 1992
by Heian
(first published 1986)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Reader Q&A
To ask other readers questions about
Humphrey the Lost Whale,
please sign up.
Be the first to ask a question about Humphrey the Lost Whale
Community Reviews
Showing 1-30
Start your review of Humphrey the Lost Whale
We got this for our 3 yr old's birthday party this summer and what an awesome book! All my kids love it, my preschoolers and my 5 yr old alike! A story about a lost whale named Humphrey who got stuck in the San Francisco Bay back in 1985, an event I hadn't heard anything about. (I had been ten yrs old at the time) It talks about his migration patterns, how they recognized him year after year, and how the people banded together to get him out of his predicament. At the very end, it has even more
...more
This is a great book that I read with my niece, Jayda. She read the book to me, and we watched the video about Humphrey’s journey through the San Francisco Bay and up the Sacramento River.
I remember seeing this story televised on the news as a child. I believe this is where my love for humpback whales began.
I remember seeing this story televised on the news as a child. I believe this is where my love for humpback whales began.
Useful book for our local children at the time because they knew about the true news story about Humphrey the Whale, a creature that inspired my and others' great concern.
...more
Is it possible for a child not to like this book? Ms Tokuda first introduces a pod of humpback whales, then quickly focuses on the whale who entered San Francisco Bay. Like a true reporter, Tokuda sticks to the facts, telling what people observe from the shore. The whale makes his way upstream, and here again, Tokuda stays focused on the whale (not feeling a need to name the towns and bridges that the whale encounters). The reader senses the suspense and empathizes with the misguided whale.
Kids ...more
Kids ...more
I read this for Dewey's 24 Hour Reverse Readathon.
The true story of Humphrey the Humpback Whale, who got lost near San Francisco in 1985. Told with beautiful illustrations in picture book format. Moved me to tears at some points. Great true story for sea creature lovers and children.
4 stars. ...more
The true story of Humphrey the Humpback Whale, who got lost near San Francisco in 1985. Told with beautiful illustrations in picture book format. Moved me to tears at some points. Great true story for sea creature lovers and children.
4 stars. ...more
Humphrey the whale enters San Francisco Bay and travels up the Sacramento River. This is based on a true story that happened in 1985. The book is well illustrated and tells the story for children well. Learning how the whale was saved was interesting to those of us who were unfamiliar with Humphreys story.
Nov 03, 2017
Cathy
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
2nd to 3rd graders
The original book based on the true story of Humphrey, the Humpback whale who swam into the San Francisco Bay.
The third graders really got into this book - they liked the map at the back showing Humphreys route and how trapped he was in the shallow creek.
The third graders really got into this book - they liked the map at the back showing Humphreys route and how trapped he was in the shallow creek.
Jun 03, 2020
J.C.
rated it
it was amazing
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
children-s-books,
non-fiction
I was a one year old when Humphrey came by our town. I wish I could remember it.
Anyway, this is a very well done book covering the event. There’s a small tidbit of facts about humpback wales on the back cover which is neat, along with some photos of Humphrey.
Anyway, this is a very well done book covering the event. There’s a small tidbit of facts about humpback wales on the back cover which is neat, along with some photos of Humphrey.
Picture book recounting the misguided Humpback whale that swam into San Francisco Bay and up the Sacramento River in 1985.
This true story brings the drama and triumphant successes. A very sweet book!
“Humphrey the Lost Whale” by Wendy Tokunda is a heart-warming story about a humpback whale who became lost and stuck in the Sacramento River and how a group of scientists worked together to help Humphrey find his way. Humphrey went from the ocean into the San Francisco Bay, and then continued up the Sacramento River. After passing through a very tight space under a bridge, he became stuck upstream. Luckily, people were there to help him. They banged pipes underwater to scare him into turning ar
...more
I have a bit of a soft spot for this book, as my parents bought me a copy of the original printing after the Reading Rainbow episode aired. Pretty sure I read it until the binding fell apart. Nostalgia is a powerful force.
Review written for and published by Portland Book Review on April 29th:
Humphrey the Lost Whale is a classic children’s book, that is both educational and fun – it also featured in an original episode of Reading Rainbow. A reprinting of the original 1992 publication and based on ...more
Review written for and published by Portland Book Review on April 29th:
Humphrey the Lost Whale is a classic children’s book, that is both educational and fun – it also featured in an original episode of Reading Rainbow. A reprinting of the original 1992 publication and based on ...more
This book was a "book du jour" when I first began teaching. I don't hear about it any longer.
It tells the true story of a humpback whale that swam under the Golden Gate Bridge and then up the Sacramento River. The river is fresh water. Humphrey got himself stuck in shallow water past a small and narrow bridge. It took a lot of help to get Humphrey turned around and back underneath the tiny bridge before he swam back out to sea.
A cute little real-life story with a happy ending. ...more
It tells the true story of a humpback whale that swam under the Golden Gate Bridge and then up the Sacramento River. The river is fresh water. Humphrey got himself stuck in shallow water past a small and narrow bridge. It took a lot of help to get Humphrey turned around and back underneath the tiny bridge before he swam back out to sea.
A cute little real-life story with a happy ending. ...more
Excellent! I love the true stories! This offers many different points to teach, a few of which are; the difference between fresh water and salt water, migration, humans interacting with animals and keeping hope despite challenging circumstances. We enjoyed looking up news clips on youtube of when these events took place in California's bay area! Which is another teaching point; what defines a bay, river and ocean!
...more
Jan 02, 2012
Randie D. Camp, M.S.
rated it
really liked it
Shelves:
childrens-nonfiction,
picture-books
A real account of a Whale who got lost in Sacramento River and the community came together to help him find his way back to the sea.
My son and I watched this book on a Reading Rainbow DVD, however, we still got to see the beautiful illustrations of the book and it was evident the text had a natural flow for reading aloud.
My son and I watched this book on a Reading Rainbow DVD, however, we still got to see the beautiful illustrations of the book and it was evident the text had a natural flow for reading aloud.
A cute true story about a humpback whale named Humphrey who travels from San Francisco Bay deep into the freshwater rivers north of the city and gets trapped there; he is rescued and helped along by people who have gathered at the river's sides, and pushed back towards the ocean.
...more
This book was interesting. When reading it I could see so many project ideas coming into play. It is a great awareness book to help prepare for the worst case scenario. I had never heard of this story so it was fascinating to learn about a whale in San Francisco.
I read this with both my children.
I especially like that this is a true story about a whale and about people coming together to help this animal.
Beautiful story!! We picked up this book in a lovely, small independent bookstore in Sausalito, right where this story took place.
I remember hearing the story about Humphrey on the news when I was younger, and I absolutely loved this book! My daughter did too, she wanted to hear it again!
Reading Rainbow: Humphrey the Lost Whale
Humphrey is a great children's book. Informative and easy to understand and could spark dialogue about sea life, travel, jobs, friendship, and community. One I'll definitely enjoy reading to my kids.
...more
Pretty great true story. My girls really enjoyed it.
There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Be the first to start one »
Readers also enjoyed
News & Interviews
Some people love books. Some people fall in love. And some people love books about falling in love. Every month our team sorts through the new...
30 likes · 7 comments
No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »
