Whales To See The is a marine sightseeing adventure of the same type as the same author's better-known novel of teenaged rebellion, Bless the Beasts & Children, was. If you liked Bless the Beasts, about Arizona's annual buffalo hunt, you'll like this grey whale migration story, too, aimed at slightly younger readers. Whales To See The is also one of the first books of fiction for teens written about autistic kids and teenagers with special needs in normal schools.
When Dee and John and the other "special" students in their small class learn that they may go out on a boat to watch the semi-annual whale migration off the California coast, they are nearly beside themselves with excitement. But their excitement, if they can't control it, may be the one thing that prevents them from being allowed to go. For Dee Dee and John and their classmates are neurologically disturbed children who have been brain-damaged or born with some motor dysfunction. While they suffer emotionally from their disabilities, intellectually they are as capable as any other kids their age.
Despite forecasts of poor weather, Miss Fishes' class goes out on the big sightseeing boat, The Protector, from San Diego, along with another class--one of "normal" children. At first, the normal kids are caually cruel to the disturbed ones, until bad weather makes them all frightened and seasick; near disaster, followed by the sudden appearance of a pod of grey whales, brings about a suspenseful and satisfying denouement.
