NARWHAL

A young narwhal joins others of its kind on a long and perilous Arctic migratory round.

“You are a narwhal,” Fleming writes, “shy, / swift, / small (for a whale).” With one giant tooth that is “taller than a man,” not to mention “green with algae,” “alive with sea lice,” and still, researchers say, of uncertain function, the sleek, mottled form in So’Oteh’s glowing, light-drenched marine settings floats sociably with other members of its pod. “Side by side by side,” the whales peek out through a gap in the ice until hunger leads to a rolling dive into darker regions for food. Lengthening days signal that it’s time to move to summer waters, avoiding predatory orcas; at summer’s end, the annual migration continues, despite the spread of ice across the water and roving polar bears that make access to the air hazardous. Simultaneously immersive, lyrical, and informative, Fleming’s text shines, accompanied by So’Oteh’s luminous art. Narwhals may not (yet) be endangered, the author concludes, even if their Arctic habitat is definitely threatened by climate change. The species may be of “least concern” to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, but in the wake of this sympathetic portrait and its substantially factual afterword, readers will find these real-life unicorns of “most interest.”

Rich in facts and feelings, a warm invitation to join the pod of sea mammal lovers.