By Asha de Vos
Illustrated by Adam Hook
Review by Daria Blackwell
Princeton University Press, Princeton and Oxford
2026
Hardcover, 223 pages, with Appendix
ISBN: 978-0-691-27321-1
eBook: 978-0-691-27322-8
Have you ever wished you could learn more about whales but couldn’t stand the thought of the scientific jargon that usually accompanies such works? Fear no more. Whale is a plain English and marvellously illustrated book about the lives of whales.
The author, Asha de Vos, is a marine biologist and pioneer of blue whale research in the Indian Ocean. She is the founder of Oceanswell, and her work has been featured in National Geographic, The New York Times, BBC, and TED. In 2024, Asha was invited to join the UN Secretary General’s Scientific Advisory Board. Yet her book is more of a naturalist’s take on cetacean life.
For example, Asha explains that cetaceans experience menopause and are among the few species that do. Orcas may live 20 years of their lives after childbearing years, and during those years, when they are not burdened with their own children, they spend time passing on their knowledge to their grandchildren, mostly their grandsons. This is perhaps a behaviour witnessed off the Iberian Peninsula.
And did you know that when whales sleep, they only shut down half the brain at a time? That’s because breathing is not involuntary as it is for us humans, they must think about every breath they take. So, they rest half the brain at a time so the other half can remember to breathe.
Now here’s an interesting titbit: Male whales do not have external genitalia. Their genitals are contained within a genital slit below their bellybutton to reduce drag. The penis emerges only when necessary, which can make identifying gender tricky.
So, there you go, learn about how whales, live, eat and procreate, how they learn, and how they interact with other species. This is about the lives of whales, not about their biology. Enjoy!
