- Audio CD: 48 pages
- Publisher: William Morrow; Unabridged edition (Jan 4 2007)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0061238791
- ISBN-13: 978-0061238796
- Product Dimensions: 15 x 13.2 x 3.6 cm
- Shipping Weight: 249 g
- Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (47 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #1,193,345 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Amazon
In his entertaining adventure-in-whale-researching, Fluke, or, I Know Why the Winged Whale Sings, Nathan Quinn, a prominent marine biologist, has been conducting studies in Hawaii for years trying to unravel the secret of why humpback whales sing. During a typical day of data gathering, Nate believes his mind is failing: the subject whale has "Bite Me" scrawled across its tail. Events become even stranger as the self-proclaimed "action nerds," Nate, photographer Clay, their research assistant Amy, and Kona, a white Rasta (a Jewish kid from New Jersey), encounter sabotage to their data and equipment. They also observe increasingly bizarre whale behavior, including a phone call from the whale to their wealthy sponsor to ask that Nate bring it a hot pastrami and Swiss on rye, and discover both a thriving underwater city and the secret to what happened to Amelia Earhart.
Thoughtful, irreverent, and often hilarious, Moore has crafted a tale that contains a bit of the saga of declining whale populations due to hunting and habitat destruction, as well as his over-the-top, decadent wit as applied to scientific methodology and professional jealousies. Moore notes a pasty, rival scientist "looked like Death out for his after-dinner stroll before a busy night of e-mailing heart attacks and tumors to a few million lucky winners," and that killer whales (which are all named Kevin), are "just four tons of doofus dressed up like a police car." Smart, sincere, and a whale of a story, Fluke is terrific. --Michael Ferch --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Booklist
Biologist Nate Quinn has been researching whale songs off the coast of Hawaii for years, and although he enjoys his work, he's never discovered anything really earth-shattering . . . until the day he sights the whale with "Bite Me" written across its tail. This astounding spectacle soon leads him and his trusty companions--flirtatious research assistant Amy; Clay, his loyal photographer; their perpetually stoned surfer-dude helper, Kona; and Nate's ex-wife, Libby, now a lesbian (apparently because of an unfortunate encounter with a randy male whale)--on a surprising adventure above and below the ocean. This amusing pastiche cobbles together elements from all the classic sea yarns: from Jonah and the Whale to Moby Dick to 20,000 Leagues under the Sea. Unfortunately, the bland cover art, strange title, and lackluster jacket blurb will not help this book to fly off the shelves. Recommended for those looking for an idle beach read or something to take on a long plane flight. Michael Gannon
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.
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First Sentence
Amy called the whale punkin. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
Amy called the whale punkin. Read the first page
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Concordance
Browse Sample PagesConcordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Most helpful customer reviews
3.0 out of 5 stars
Halfway through, Moore finds the edge, then he jumps.,
By
This review is from: Fluke: Or, I Know Why the Winged Whale Sings (Hardcover)
This is a readable, generally entertaining book. The funny bits - and there are a lot of them - are really funny. But about half way - maybe a little more - he goes from pleasantly wierd to a complete abondenment of any sense of believability. It was a bit like he'd started writing the book, came up with a couple of good gags, found himself in a spot he couldn't think of a way to get out of, and just started randomly inserting impossibilities to make the pieces stick together. The impossibilities bring out the paper thin personalities of the characters, and for me, it sort of unraveled from there. In some ways, the character development of the central characters is summed up on page one. Nate is a researcher, good hearted, obsessed with whales. Amy is young, hot and looks good in shorts. Things happen around these people, we get revelations about their past, but that's about it - the revelations don't lead to any better understanding. For me its unsatisfying - neither the story nor the characters nor the humor really grips.
5.0 out of 5 stars
intelligent and funny,
By
This review is from: Fluke: Or, I Know Why the Winged Whale Sings (Hardcover)
This is the kind of book that gets you into trouble on the New York City subway. You suddenly laugh out loud and make everyone stare in your direction. Much like Moore's other books (I count Lamb as one of my favorites of all time, and the Lust Lizard of Melancholy Cover as excellent), this is intelligent and funny. The setting here is competing whale researchers in Hawaii, with a variety of science fiction elements. If you like Douglas Adams or Kurt Vonnegut, it's impossible not to like Christopher Moore. The dialogue is among the funniest Moore has ever written.
3.0 out of 5 stars
Read Lamb Instead,
By Cindy Peters (Los Angeles, Ca United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Fluke: Or, I Know Why the Winged Whale Sings (Hardcover)
Christopher Moore is noramlly funny, insightful, slightly twisted and respectful of his subjects. Fluke seemed like an assignment he had to finish but needed to expand to fit a minimum requirement. I kept waiting (and waiting....) for his wonderful sense of humor to kick in. I wanted to care for any of his characters. I didn't until the last 50 papges. I do have to admit that the answers are pretty darn odd and unexpected even in a book with a whale tale that says "Bite Me."If you loved Lamb or Blue Coyote and must read this book, read the first 50 pages and just jump to the middle of the book. Better yet, try to check it out at the library.
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