Eye of the Whale : Epic Passage from Baja to Siberia (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "IT is early January..." (more)
Key Phrases: western gray whale, saltworks project, gray whale calves, San Ignacio Lagoon, San Francisco, Bering Sea (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

More than a century ago, the whaler Charles Melville Scammon chased pods of gray whales across the Pacific, slaughtering them by the hundreds and driving them nearly to the point of extinction. Dick Russell, a noted conservationist and journalist, follows Scammon's wake, bringing news both good and bad about the condition of the gray whale today.

Chronicling a journey along Pacific gray whale routes from Sakhalin Island to the southern tip of Baja California, Russell braces his narrative with the long, politically charged tale of a Japanese corporation's efforts to build a salt-extraction plant on a Mexican lagoon that has served for ages as an important gray whale breeding ground. Writing knowingly of gray whale natural history, and of the effects such an alteration of the environment would have on the species, Russell then turns to other controversial threats to the gray, such as the Washington Makah tribe's decision in the late 1990s to revive a lost tradition of whale-hunting, and the Japanese government's refusal to honor international treaties protecting the gray and other whale species from widespread depredation.

The good news, as Russell writes, is that the Mexican salt plant was eventually stopped. The bad news is that the gray whale is still everywhere under siege. Though it does not displace recent books such as Serge Dedina's Saving the Gray Whale and Robert Sullivan's A Whale Hunt, Russell's is by far the most complete popular account of the gray whale across its wide range, and it makes useful reading for anyone seeking to learn more about this key marine species. --Gregory McNamee

From Publishers Weekly

Thrilling whale watchers, stumping scientists and reminding environmentalists of the fragility of our ecological balance, the mysterious, massive gray whale takes an epic and emotional place in our hearts and minds. Here Russell (The Man Who Knew Too Much), an environmental journalist best known for sparking a movement to save the Atlantic striped bass, makes a passionate argument for the protection of California grays, dubbed "whales of passage" by the 19th-century whaler and naturalist Charles Melville Scammon. Juxtaposing his tale of the history and migration of the grays with Scammon's writings about them, Russell follows the whales' yearly 5000-mile swim from the warm lagoons in Baja where they give birth and exhibit "friendly" behavior toward humans up the Pacific coast of North America to the shallow and comparably chilly feeding grounds of Chirikof Basin in the Bering Sea. Along the way, he tells the harrowing tale of the gray's near extinction due to commercial whaling and the many real threats to the species from predators and human commercial development, while also gleefully detailing the work of marine biologists and environmentalists. For journalistic balance, Russell grudgingly gives some space to those he finds threatening to the grays; for example, he tepidly interviews members of the Makah tribe who hunted and killed a gray in 1999 and those involved in Mitsubishi's salt farming interests. However, their perspectives are quickly swallowed up by his disdain for their conflicts of interest and his articulate expression of the imperative to protect the gray whale specifically and marine life in general. (Aug.) Forecast: Our fascinating friends of the deep have many fans. If the popularity of Robert Sullivan's more personal account of the Makahs' assertion of their whaling rights in last year's A Whale Hunt is any indication, this will find an eager readership, though some may be daunted by its massive proportions.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 688 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster; First Edition edition (July 31, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0684866080
• ISBN-13: 978-0684866086
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.5 x 1.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #879,915 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent chronicle and tribute to the Gray Whale, October 17, 2001

By	Captain Paul Watson (Malibu, CA United States) - See all my reviews

Dick Russell has produced an amazing chronicle of the life of the California Gray whale. This is a book that is not only important today but will hold a place of value and respect hundreds of years into the future. Sadly this book may most likely survive the species itself.
I have spent over two decades studying and working to protect the Gray whale and I've lead four major conservation expeditons to protect the species. The first was in 1981 to Siberia, the 2nd and 3rd to Neah Bay in 98 and 99 to oppose the Makah whale hunt and the 4th to San Ignacio in 2000 to oppose the development of an industrial salt processing scheme that would have damaged the breeding and calving homes of the Grays.
Dick Russell got all the facts right in the areas that I have intimate involvement with so I can safely assume that his facts in all other areas are equally investigated and thus correct.
This is a wonderful story and it is a great work of historical documentation both natural,social and cultural.
My life was changed by looking into the eye of a whale in 1975. I believe that Dick also caught a glimpse of the mystery, the majesty, the magic and the marvel of the mind of the whale reflected from the eye of one of these great and gentle giants.
For only a person who has seen into the eye of a whale could have written such an insightful book.
I intend to buy a dozen of Dick Russell's books for Christmas presents this year.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is the one to read!, July 27, 2001

By	Dan Spomer "bookemdano" (Sekiu, WA) - See all my reviews

For a truly remarkable experience, you must read this book!

Mr. Russell has done exhaustive research, combined with his obvious talent, to create an epic that will define the world of the California gray whale for years to come.

While opening your eyes to the life the gray whale, you will also- for the first time in print- discover the truth behind the Makah tribe's whale hunt.

A highly recommended book- this will be the crowning jewel in your library for a very long time. For many years hence, this book will be THE defining work on the California gray whale.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A gift for the California gray whale!, July 26, 2001

By	Heidi Tiura (Trinity County, CA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

If you believe the whales have been saved, you're sadly mistaken. Charles Scammon was an early whaler who discovered the gray whales' favored birthing spots in Baja's lagoons. This discovery led to a massive slaughter, nearly running them into extinction. Scammon was also a great naturalist who, after quitting whaling, published many fine writings. In Dick Russell's book, one has the opportunity to examine this ancient animal's past through Scammon's eyes as well as to learn the very newest information, which is not all good. Some scientists hoard their knowledge, some people who consider themselves experts are sorely out of date. New behavior we, and others, have documented has wanted for a holding vessel, a place to share this knowledge with the world. That is what Eye of the Whale is and it is spectacular. We spend our days with whales and so our knowledge comes with salt spray and sunburn. I would be surprised if, upon completion of this epic "vessel," you didn't find yourself tasting the salt and squinting from the sunlight reflected off sparkling waters. It IS that good.