NARWHAL

A pod of narwhals making its annual migration is the frame for this introduction to a most unusual sea mammal.

Anderson, who produced a BBC program on the springtime melting of Arctic ice that marked the first time narwhal migration was captured on film, draws from that experience to create this intriguing nature title. Narwhals are unique members of the whale family; males (and a few females) have a single tooth, a tusk that grows out like a 6-foot spear, hence the sobriquet the Arctic unicorn (tuskless narwhals have no teeth at all). Anderson’s story follows a pod from their deep sea winter home as they travel north to the high Arctic islands, where they will spend their summer, and back (a map in the backmatter traces the route along Canada’s Baffin Island), focusing on its leader, an older male. There’s suspense, as the open path through the ice closes up and the narwhals, which breathe air, must find another hole. Predators appear. A baby is born. Additional facts about the species appear in a smaller font on each spread. The text is set directly on striking full-bleed images, contrasting the dark depths with surprising colors in the sky and the summer light. Weaver works in charcoal, a medium particularly suited for the shadowy underwater pictures, but the blue skies and white ice of her Arctic vistas are equally appealing. An afterword touches on threats to the species from climate change. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

An inviting glimpse into an unfamiliar world.