IN SEARCH OF THE BLUE WHALE by Alexander McCarthy, we have a lot of blue: Dan finds himself in a storm and his boat breaks, but care and protection comes from his greatest friend, the blue whale and yes, the blue skies turn to a new dawn bright and shiny gold when the shore is reached in peace and safety.
Each word has been carefully chosen and the simplicity of the language melts into the accompanying images. Original artwork of the author offers a platform for the child to view himself as connected to the universe, reflecting the forces of nature in its immensity with this grand design of the oceans, the stars, the universe. The child is taken on an exploration of the earth with horizons wide and nature unpredictable.
The message
Embrace a mission, go sailing, explore the unknown while stars are waving and winking, twinkling. The blue wale, the biggest animal, is there to protect and take you to shore, safe and sound. To me, the story lends itself to a biblical connotation as in the Bible, Geneses: a miraculous mission, starting on the first day and ending on the seventh.
The illustrations show the soft and wild realities, the protagonists bigger than the self, forming part of the adventure. The stars are the compass, the dreams the propeller, the child the navigator of the mission and the universe with all its immensity and magic, is there to explore.
We need authors that can with illustrations and words, bring understanding to children, opening their eyes in search of the mystery of all things. To further their dreams and hopes their parents have for them, to beat adversity. We want artists that can bring image and words together forming a realistic visionary experience.
With tender embrace, we can connect the realities of a child and the parent’s spiritual yearning for him, with the expressions in the drawings in search of the big blue whale. The child sets his soul upon some distant stars, far horizons and comes safely to shore.
The surroundings permeate confidence and excitement meeting symbolic characters, one day far from each other in time, page by page, the author summoning them on stage through the paintings. The world condensed in simple, soft pictures… to explore. From dark blues, the paintings progressively becoming almost transparent- where drawings show fluid strokes, objects in soft, fading colours.
The colours used in the pictures spring from deep blue and as the experience progresses, waters become stormier. We meet symbols and characters which seem to gather together, each to settle a pre-destined place where at the end, the colours fade into deep gold and become lighter and lighter to symbolise hope and arrival at a place where the atmosphere is softened, unfolding the dream that has come true.
Do buy this book for your child, especially if he loves art.
Scarlett Jensen, Amazon Review, April 13, 2016