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S'Gana: The Black Whale
Moved by his love for a captive orca whale, young Derek Simpson makes discoveries about himself and his Haida Indian heritage as he struggles to free S'gana.
221 pages, Hardcover
First published October 1, 1992
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June 22, 2024
Reading this book when it was first published, in 1992, must have been a different experience from reading it now - in a post-Blackfish, post-Tilikum and Dawn Blanchard context. Post-Free Willy, even, which came out in '93 and was an early part of changing the cultural conversation about orcas in captivity.
Now, it feels... prescient. In particular, the descriptions of S'gana displaying 'threatening' behavior towards her trainer, including holding her underwater briefly - those are things that have actually happened, in both fatal and nonfatal incidents publicized since this book came out. The author bio mentions that Stauffacher worked at a marine park seasonally for three years, and I wonder if this aspect of whale behavior was based on stories she heard from trainers, or on direct observation.
I was also particularly struck by this line:
Because... as someone who did, briefly, entertain the fantasy of working at Sea World, isn't that the root of it? These creatures are magical, and there's a natural desire to be close to them to catch a little bit of that magic, to have a special relationship with them which, in turn, makes you special and magical, yourself. To be fair, the book still sort of plays on that - Derek has a literally magical connection to S'gana, which is what makes him the protagonist - but for Derek, being 'special' means sacrifice, trying to take action on behalf of another.
It speaks to me both about humans' relationship to whales in captivity, and more broadly about the nature of love - that love is service, striving to make another's existence as joyous and rich as possible. Love isn't about having, it's about giving, and that's true whether we're talking about relationships between people or between a species.
...That got away from me a bit there. Anyhow. The book - it's a solid middle grade novel, with a surprisingly emotionally nuanced ending, and also highlights a Native American/First Nations people who haven't always been well-known outside of the Northwest. Judging by the fact that this is the second review ever for the book, I'm guessing not many people will get the chance to read it these days, but I do think it's worth the time.
Now, it feels... prescient. In particular, the descriptions of S'gana displaying 'threatening' behavior towards her trainer, including holding her underwater briefly - those are things that have actually happened, in both fatal and nonfatal incidents publicized since this book came out. The author bio mentions that Stauffacher worked at a marine park seasonally for three years, and I wonder if this aspect of whale behavior was based on stories she heard from trainers, or on direct observation.
I was also particularly struck by this line:
For years, Katy had made Theresa feel special.
Because... as someone who did, briefly, entertain the fantasy of working at Sea World, isn't that the root of it? These creatures are magical, and there's a natural desire to be close to them to catch a little bit of that magic, to have a special relationship with them which, in turn, makes you special and magical, yourself. To be fair, the book still sort of plays on that - Derek has a literally magical connection to S'gana, which is what makes him the protagonist - but for Derek, being 'special' means sacrifice, trying to take action on behalf of another.
It speaks to me both about humans' relationship to whales in captivity, and more broadly about the nature of love - that love is service, striving to make another's existence as joyous and rich as possible. Love isn't about having, it's about giving, and that's true whether we're talking about relationships between people or between a species.
...That got away from me a bit there. Anyhow. The book - it's a solid middle grade novel, with a surprisingly emotionally nuanced ending, and also highlights a Native American/First Nations people who haven't always been well-known outside of the Northwest. Judging by the fact that this is the second review ever for the book, I'm guessing not many people will get the chance to read it these days, but I do think it's worth the time.
Displaying 1 of 1 review