Expressions are different in sign language, her teacher was upset because a poem she wrote didn't rhyme but to her it did.

The way she relates to the hearing world and how they relate to her was interesting to see. The quest was made harder because she speaks a different language than everyone else. The book follows her quest to let this whale know someone is listening to him. When she learns about a whale who seems to have the same problem, she immediately feels a kinship with him. Iris, being the only deaf girl in her school, feels like no one understands her. This is about a whale, but it is more about the girl who is chasing the whale. I appreciated that Lynne Kelly is totally transparent in her connections with the Deaf community in the Author's note, and also about the readers she hired to hold her story to account. The book shows some really beautiful growth over the course of the story, and Iris figuring out what she needs to continue that growth is an incredibly strong thread. The focus on Blue 55 and his song was such a thoughtful and high impact emotional bridge - but I love that Tristan calls Iris out on figuring out why she needs so badly to connect to this whale. I really hope, in the end, that she gets her Philco back. I also really loved Iris' interactions with sound, and her keen appreciation of radio repair. Mad props to Grandma for her heist abilities and her wandering nature. I also love the cruise ship as getaway - hard to imagine a more effective means of removing oneself from regular contact while presenting a very safe way to do it.

Altogether, the relationships were really well written across the board - from the clueless and harmful classmate Nina, to her brother and best friend, to her sometimes rocky but very realistic communication with her parents. Great book! I particularly loved Iris' relationships with her Deaf grandparents and her way of signing poems with her grandfather.

A song for a whale book