Willa and the Whale

by Chad Morris and Shelly Brown

[sstaley]

I really loved this story of a thirteen-year-old girl and her journey through grief after the death of her mom. Willa had been living with her Marine Biologist mother in Japan after her parent's divorce. Her mom passes away and she heads back to the US to live with her dad, his new wife, and several step-siblings. Willa is suffering as she tries to adjust to life with this new family living in her old house. Willa doesn't know if her old best friend still wants to be her friend. Her life is filled with doubts and sorrow. Willa finds a friend and mentor in a humpback whale that she met while on a whale watching tour with her dad. Honestly, I loved this aspect of the novel. Willa found someone she could share all of her troubles with and Meg, the whale, was able to help her find the answers she was looking for.

This novel highlights so much middle school angst, tweens and teens will be able to really relate to Willa, her bestie Marc, and her snotty rival, Lizzy. The uncertainties of fitting in and being good enough are shown many times in the book. I liked to see how each one of the teens grew and became better people. Willa's development as a person was the greatest, as she with Meg's help learned to let the anger go, forgive others, and finally learn to start healing from the loss of her mom. Funny enough, Meg the "talking" whale was my favorite character. I loved her humor and sound advice she gave to Willa. I truly enjoyed the moments that Willa and Meg chatted with one another.

I recommend this book to tweens, teens, and adults. This book would be a great family read-aloud.