The last whale by Chris Vick

The Last Whale written by Chris Vick is a complex and intriguing story spanning three generations. Eco-activitist Abi has been asked to leave her school due to her recent climate change activism and is travelling with her parents and younger sister Tegan to a remote Norwegian island to visit her grandmother.

Abi has “borrowed” an AI device from NewTek where she has had work experience and hopes the remoteness of the island will allow her to develop the capabilities of the AI technology even further. While on the island Abi discovers her great grandfather, thought to have hunted and killed whales, actually recorded whale songs. With her AI device, she is able to interpret the songs and realises that climate change and human activity is killing off the whales. With her AI device, now named Moonlight, they are able to track and record a whale in the present day. The song is haunting and Abi vows to let the world know the danger the world is facing if whales die out.

Fast forward many years, Abi now has a 13-year-old daughter Tonje and together they live on a small island with Moonlight and are completely self-sufficient. Abi is still passionately searching for the last whales and Moonlight has evolved and become more powerful and “human-like”. The final generation brings Tonje, Lars and their daughter Astrid travelling again to go in search of a safer environment as the world’s eco-systems are in a mess. All those years ago, governments did not listen to Abi’s dire warnings and she and her family are seemingly fighting this battle alone.

Author Chris Vick works for a whale and dolphin conservation charity and his previous novel Girl.Boy.Sea was shortlisted for the 2020 CILIP Carnegie Medal. He readily admits not all facts in the story are 100% correct but is adamant the need to protect our whales and the ecosystem is the key to saving our environment for future generations. This book is an important read for all. While the story is fictious it gives vital and chilling facts about how human negligence and climate change is damaging our fragile ecosystems.

Themes: Whales, Artificial Intelligence, Family, Relationships, Climate Change, Futuristic.

Kathryn Beilby