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Freeing Keiko: The Journey of a Killer Whale from Free Willy to the Wild
Captured as a two-year-old calf off the coast of Iceland in 1979 by a fishing vessel, the killer whale who would become Keiko was soon sent to North America, struggling for many of his early years in captivity. Sent to live at an amusement park in Mexico City, the orca languished in a tank too small, in water too warm, and received an improper diet—and was soon beset by a vicious skin virus. But after he starred in director Richard Donner’s hit film Free Willy in 1993, Keiko gained international celebrity as the most famous marine mammal in the world, as millions learned of his plight.
With the help of a dedicated team of environmentalists led by the Earth Island Institute and $7.5 million from the deep pockets of eccentric cellular-phone billionaire Craig McCaw, he was rescued from his critical illness and installed in a $7.3-million facility in Oregon that was designed to prepare him for a return to the wild. In a move that would cause controversy within the scientific, environmental, and marine park communities, he ultimately would return to his native Iceland where a team of keepers would attempt to release him, making the cinematic story that had captivated the world’s children a reality.
Award-winning environmental writer Kenneth Brower has created a narrative that is by turns heartrending and exhilarating, re-creating the intricate, mesmerizing world of the sea in all its lushness. In bringing to life this unforgettable animal alongside the men and women who dedicated their lives to his return to the sea, Freeing Keiko illuminates much about human nature as well.
Praise for Kenneth Brower’s A Song for Satawal:
“Like the work of Paul Gauguin and, perhaps, of Margaret Mead, this is a thoroughly romantic account, the product of an astral traveler-in-reverse who finds . . . more to marvel at than John Glenn ever did in space.”
—The New York Times Book Review
320 pages, Hardcover
First published October 20, 2005
11 people are currently reading
279 people want to read
About the author
Kenneth Brower
42 books8 followersKenneth Brower is an American nonfiction writer. He is the oldest son of the late environmentalist David R. Brower.
He is best known for his many books about the environment, national parks, and natural places, many of them in hundreds of libraries and by major publishers, including several titles in the series The Earth's Wild Places published by the Friends of the Earth in the 1970s. His most widely read book, on Yosemite, is in over 1200 worldCat libraries. Many of his books have been published by The National Geographic Society. Several of his books have been translated into Japanese, German, Spanish, and Hebrew.
He is also known for being the author of The Starship and the Canoe, a comparison of the lives of scientist Freeman Dyson and his 'rebellious' son George Dyson.
(from Wikipedia)
He is best known for his many books about the environment, national parks, and natural places, many of them in hundreds of libraries and by major publishers, including several titles in the series The Earth's Wild Places published by the Friends of the Earth in the 1970s. His most widely read book, on Yosemite, is in over 1200 worldCat libraries. Many of his books have been published by The National Geographic Society. Several of his books have been translated into Japanese, German, Spanish, and Hebrew.
He is also known for being the author of The Starship and the Canoe, a comparison of the lives of scientist Freeman Dyson and his 'rebellious' son George Dyson.
(from Wikipedia)
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
May 7, 2022
Freeing Keiko is a balanced, journalistic account of the Free Willy/Keiko project as well as Keiko's biography - a Norse Saga, of sorts, in chapters where Kenneth Brower chose this style to tell the whale's story.
There was one thing in the book that I have to note here: the author's reluctance to accept that killer whale societies are matriarchal. But that aside, after some ~70 first pages that were less than promising it turned into a very engrossing read. I thought I'd read most of what there was to Keiko's story in Death at Seaworld, but Brower proved me wrong. He was on site for some of the events described in the book, and talked to people who were actively working with Keiko till the very end.
Now, this has to be addressed, since there is such a book: I'm not sure how accurate Killing Keiko--a play on this book's title, I suppose--is, since I haven't seen that author/trainer's name mentioned even once in the book. Either way, Freeing Keiko is not a Save the Whales, Anti-Captivity campaign book. Brower was very clear from start to end on what the Keiko project did wrong, on Keiko not being a good candidate for release, on the successes and failures of "freeing" him. It's not at all one-sided, which I'm sure is what the title suggests. All in all, it's a book I would absolutely recommend to anyone who is interested in Keiko's story.
Further reading about Keiko:
Death at Seaworld: Shamu and the Dark Side of Killer Whales in Captivity
About Luna and Springer, one habituated, the other successfully released:
The Lost Whale: The True Story of an Orca Named Luna
Operation Orca: Springer, Luna and the Struggle to Save West Coast Killer Whales
There was one thing in the book that I have to note here: the author's reluctance to accept that killer whale societies are matriarchal. But that aside, after some ~70 first pages that were less than promising it turned into a very engrossing read. I thought I'd read most of what there was to Keiko's story in Death at Seaworld, but Brower proved me wrong. He was on site for some of the events described in the book, and talked to people who were actively working with Keiko till the very end.
Now, this has to be addressed, since there is such a book: I'm not sure how accurate Killing Keiko--a play on this book's title, I suppose--is, since I haven't seen that author/trainer's name mentioned even once in the book. Either way, Freeing Keiko is not a Save the Whales, Anti-Captivity campaign book. Brower was very clear from start to end on what the Keiko project did wrong, on Keiko not being a good candidate for release, on the successes and failures of "freeing" him. It's not at all one-sided, which I'm sure is what the title suggests. All in all, it's a book I would absolutely recommend to anyone who is interested in Keiko's story.
Further reading about Keiko:
Death at Seaworld: Shamu and the Dark Side of Killer Whales in Captivity
About Luna and Springer, one habituated, the other successfully released:
The Lost Whale: The True Story of an Orca Named Luna
Operation Orca: Springer, Luna and the Struggle to Save West Coast Killer Whales
April 12, 2015
I am extremely interested in this topic. I raised money when I was a 2nd grader to help "free willy", as an adult I was very interested to read about the story. Unfortunately, I couldn't read it, the author made this a grand, airy, piece of crap. He cannot get past the idea of thinking of Keiko as some tortured, fallen, Norse God. At page 13 I was fed up with it. So, I decided to flip forward to somewhere in the middle and see if it gets any better. First passage I opened to was Brower discussing Keiko investigating something while on view by a crowd, with his penis hanging out. He devotes a page to saying how big it is and how it strikes envy in "lesser mammals", and then quotes a Melville passage about whale penises, and gives Melville a hard time for not actually calling it a penis. Next passage I opened "My backside still pained me, probably, but I did not feel it now, for I was full of wonder at this spectacle." I don't think I can push through Browers grandiose visions of, what I'm assuming, he feels is the very important role he played in Keiko's story. I can't even read it long enough to figure out whether he wanted to release Kieko or not. Maybe I've been lucky in my early forays into non-fiction, I haven't come across the egos of the authors until this one and Susan Casey's 2nd book, obviously I'm not giving up on non-fiction, but I am disappointed in this.
May 12, 2010
The movie Free Willy was a phenomenon. The story of how the life of a juvenile delinquent was turned around by his relationship with a captive killer whale, and how he in turn freed the whale, made millions of dollars worldwide. But what of Keiko, the whale star of the movie, captive and sick in an undersized pool at a second-rate aquarium in Mexico?
The clamor to rescue Keiko, and the controversies this rescue engendered, are presented in environmentalist Brower's saga of Keiko's return to the sea. Releasing a whale that was sick, had no hunting skills, and was out of shape from years in captivity is not a simple matter. What happened was well reported by the international press. Brower had access to all stages of Keiko's rehabilitation to the wild. But this is not just a sentimental story, as the author also covers the bureaucracy of an international release, the science behind Keiko's rehabilitation, and the battle over devoting so much time and resources to one animal.
The clamor to rescue Keiko, and the controversies this rescue engendered, are presented in environmentalist Brower's saga of Keiko's return to the sea. Releasing a whale that was sick, had no hunting skills, and was out of shape from years in captivity is not a simple matter. What happened was well reported by the international press. Brower had access to all stages of Keiko's rehabilitation to the wild. But this is not just a sentimental story, as the author also covers the bureaucracy of an international release, the science behind Keiko's rehabilitation, and the battle over devoting so much time and resources to one animal.
February 21, 2009
Replete with bombastic opinion and pompous-sounding quotes from Darwin, Melville and Scripture, Brower weaves irritatingly between moral outrage and sneering cynicism. The cold hard facts of his book - that Keiko lived most of his life as a commodity for human pleasure - are important and valuable, as are details of his captivity and release, yet Brower makes no judgment. The book does serve as an interesting case study of animal slavery and the bizarre attitudes humans hold towards anthropomorphized animals, but it ignores the fundamental issues of the problem.
February 5, 2011
Great detailing of the politics, planning, time, conditioning, and money needed to return a captive animal to the wild.
July 10, 2023
An enjoyable read if you are a fellow Orca-Nerd or have a strong interest in Keiko's journey. It's been twenty years since Keiko died and it's amazing to think about all the progress that has been made to bring awareness and action to the plight of captive Orcas. Keiko died in December 2003, around the same time my 2nd grade class began a segment on whales, which spawned a lifelong fascination with these animals. Keiko also died when he was 27, same age as I am, so it was a fitting time to finally read this book and makes him my favorite member of the 27 club.
Even after reading the book, I still find myself questioning what was the best course of action for Keiko? Should he have stayed in the big tank in Oregon where he seemed happy or should they have continued to chase the feeling of the 'Hollywood ending' similar to his counterpart in 'Free Willy' that mesmerized millions. Unfortunately unlike 'Willy', we don't know who Keiko's family was and he had grown up for twenty years under the care of humans. Once returned to his home waters off Iceland he travelled with different pods of orcas, but never joined them or seemed to find his family. Even if he did find his family, it's hard to know if they would have known he was once a part of them, as so much time had passed. With orcas being social animals, Keiko continued to seek out companionship from those he was the most accustomed to and gave him the most attention, humans. And Keiko seemingly LOVED attention.
I originally got this book in elementary school, a time when my aspiration in life was to be like the boy in the Free Willy movies and after a couple of attempts of reading this book, I seemingly pushed it off until I was a more mature reader. As if you're looking for something that reads like a novelization of Free Willy, this book is far from that. As the author frequently criticizes the film and much of the book is focused on the politics of the release of Keiko. While still fascinating to read the true story of Keiko and establish more of an understanding of the real whale, I often found myself put off by the author injecting much of his personal opinions that often come off as overly obnoxious and smug. Making me less enthusiastic to recommend the book to anyone that already isn't interested in the story.
Still I'm grateful I read this and gained a greater understanding of one of my childhood heroes, Keiko.
Even after reading the book, I still find myself questioning what was the best course of action for Keiko? Should he have stayed in the big tank in Oregon where he seemed happy or should they have continued to chase the feeling of the 'Hollywood ending' similar to his counterpart in 'Free Willy' that mesmerized millions. Unfortunately unlike 'Willy', we don't know who Keiko's family was and he had grown up for twenty years under the care of humans. Once returned to his home waters off Iceland he travelled with different pods of orcas, but never joined them or seemed to find his family. Even if he did find his family, it's hard to know if they would have known he was once a part of them, as so much time had passed. With orcas being social animals, Keiko continued to seek out companionship from those he was the most accustomed to and gave him the most attention, humans. And Keiko seemingly LOVED attention.
I originally got this book in elementary school, a time when my aspiration in life was to be like the boy in the Free Willy movies and after a couple of attempts of reading this book, I seemingly pushed it off until I was a more mature reader. As if you're looking for something that reads like a novelization of Free Willy, this book is far from that. As the author frequently criticizes the film and much of the book is focused on the politics of the release of Keiko. While still fascinating to read the true story of Keiko and establish more of an understanding of the real whale, I often found myself put off by the author injecting much of his personal opinions that often come off as overly obnoxious and smug. Making me less enthusiastic to recommend the book to anyone that already isn't interested in the story.
Still I'm grateful I read this and gained a greater understanding of one of my childhood heroes, Keiko.
November 14, 2011
Freeing Keiko tells the journey of the whale that starred in the Free Willy movie trilogy. As his story grew on the public money was raised to free him back to the wild from which he was first obtained. One of the most significant scenes in this story is when Michael Jackson bought him a larger tank to freely swim in. Keiko was previously living in a dolphin tank that was far too small for a killer whale. After reading this book I learned how to provide significant details to my nonfiction pieces that would attract the reader and leave out the information that is not necessary to the story.
October 30, 2019
I was disappointed with this account of Keiko's rehab and release, and felt the story drifted far and often from the main story. While I appreciate all the details and the depth of the coverage I felt that that the author threw everything he knew at the page and didn't always skillfully craft it into something enjoyable to read. At times, it was struggle. I did enjoy the early passages imagining Keiko's life before captivity, and the life that wild whales experience. I also got a real understanding of the logistical and political difficulties of rehabilitation.
July 18, 2022
A good story told through bad writing. There were some passages that were almost identical that appeared pages apart - not sure how that slid past an editor. Wish this author had some sources to back up his claims, especially when he contradicts the information presented by actual marine biologists.
February 7, 2024
I've always been interested in orcas and dolphins, and as a child I loved Free Willy, so I was curious to read some of the real story about Keiko. Some nonfiction books I skim through, and this was one of those. It has plenty of details as it chronicles the life of Keiko, and I found it mostly enjoyable to learn about. The sections of highly detailed facts were nicely balanced with faster moving sections. For readers who are particularly interested in marine mammals and captive orcas, this is a good resource.
April 23, 2024
I really enjoyed reading “Killing Keiko” so I wanted to read this book as well to get a full unbiased perspective of Keiko’s rehabilitation and release. I do love the amount of details in the book, unfortunately it put me in a reading slump. It was difficult for me to finish this book (even though marine mammal care is my favorite subject) due to the AMOUNT of unnecessary detail, it was excessive and it was hard for me to stay focused. I do appreciate this book and would recommend it to people who are interested in the history of freeing Keiko, if they can handle this writing style.
June 6, 2011
Well this book just sucked the romance right out of the whole Free Willy story. I was one of those kids that Free Willy was really important to. It made me want to become an animal trainer, and orcas quickly became the most beautiful creatures I had ever seen. I even went through an identity crisis of sorts when I realized that I might like orcas more than my previous favorite: horses. (I started a degree for marine bio years later, though horses eventually won as it's much easier to get your hands on a horse than an orca. :) And the degree became one in education, but I digress...)
I did appreciate learning just how difficult the process of "freeing" him was, and I think it's important for people to realize that. I liked learning about all the people in Keiko's story, and getting to know Keiko's true personality. And honestly, I don't mind learning about orca reproduction one bit, but I really think we could have done it without juvenile comments about his erections every chance the author got.
The problem I think about freeing him is that people were the culture he learned, for many many years. When he actually got out into the "real world," he seemed to face the same issues we all would have faced in his position: He didn't know how to communicate with whales that speak a different language and have a different culture. He seemed resistant to leave. "I'm gonna miss my old friends." He kept going forward with what he already knew how to do, what he learned to do all those years: Go to humans for companionship. We wanted him to be a wild whale, but even after being given EVERY opportunity, wild food, open ocean, he still swam to Norway and sought out humans.
I'm glad we (America and all the people who care about Keiko) went through with trying to free him. I think we all learned a lot about ourselves, and whales did get a lot of press, which can only help them. Keiko certainly was a positive influence in the universe, even if we did spend a ridiculous amount of money on him. And overall I'm very glad I read this book, I just wish it were a little more positive. It almost seemed like the author couldn't stand what he was writing about. Though I think Keiko won him over in the end.
Also: Editing!!! There were a LOT of errors!!!!!
I did appreciate learning just how difficult the process of "freeing" him was, and I think it's important for people to realize that. I liked learning about all the people in Keiko's story, and getting to know Keiko's true personality. And honestly, I don't mind learning about orca reproduction one bit, but I really think we could have done it without juvenile comments about his erections every chance the author got.
The problem I think about freeing him is that people were the culture he learned, for many many years. When he actually got out into the "real world," he seemed to face the same issues we all would have faced in his position: He didn't know how to communicate with whales that speak a different language and have a different culture. He seemed resistant to leave. "I'm gonna miss my old friends." He kept going forward with what he already knew how to do, what he learned to do all those years: Go to humans for companionship. We wanted him to be a wild whale, but even after being given EVERY opportunity, wild food, open ocean, he still swam to Norway and sought out humans.
I'm glad we (America and all the people who care about Keiko) went through with trying to free him. I think we all learned a lot about ourselves, and whales did get a lot of press, which can only help them. Keiko certainly was a positive influence in the universe, even if we did spend a ridiculous amount of money on him. And overall I'm very glad I read this book, I just wish it were a little more positive. It almost seemed like the author couldn't stand what he was writing about. Though I think Keiko won him over in the end.
Also: Editing!!! There were a LOT of errors!!!!!
February 2, 2014
This book is about three hundred pages long but plonks along feeling more like six hundred. It doesn't seem like there's a person connected to keiko's story, however tangential, who doesn't make an appearance in these pages; there's a page and a half on a teenage girl who works at a museum in Iceland near to where keiko is held prior to his final release, for goodness' sake. That same museum's 'stuffed fish of Iceland' exhibit is described twice in very similar language within twenty pages, which is just one of the many repetitions and unneeded overlaps in the book. The author also loves the rhetorical question, and has a huge number of variations on them: does keiko remember being free? Will he be able to be released safely? What is he thinking right now? How about now? How about NOW??
It's unfortunate that the book is poorly written, because there's an interesting story here about the captive life of keiko, and the process of returning him to the wild - the first such attempt ever. There are a number of factions involved here, and it's clear from the outset that the whale is both a moneymaker and a money drain, depending on who you ask. People with the most killer whale expertise have gotten it from the captive whale industry - a natural enemy to those who have studied and supported whales in the wild. A small aquarium becomes a way-station for keiko, but after the massive earning potential of the whale is in play, they have a vested interest in not returning him to the wild. I think some of this conflict could have added a lot to the book, had the author stripped out about nine million other players (whale fans! Whale psychics! A short history of the guy who designed the sailboat used to track keiko off Iceland!) who add nothing but chaos to the story.
I ended up skimming this book because reading it would have filled my head with nonsense, and taken about a week. It's an interesting story though; it would make a good book. Sadly, this is not that book.
It's unfortunate that the book is poorly written, because there's an interesting story here about the captive life of keiko, and the process of returning him to the wild - the first such attempt ever. There are a number of factions involved here, and it's clear from the outset that the whale is both a moneymaker and a money drain, depending on who you ask. People with the most killer whale expertise have gotten it from the captive whale industry - a natural enemy to those who have studied and supported whales in the wild. A small aquarium becomes a way-station for keiko, but after the massive earning potential of the whale is in play, they have a vested interest in not returning him to the wild. I think some of this conflict could have added a lot to the book, had the author stripped out about nine million other players (whale fans! Whale psychics! A short history of the guy who designed the sailboat used to track keiko off Iceland!) who add nothing but chaos to the story.
I ended up skimming this book because reading it would have filled my head with nonsense, and taken about a week. It's an interesting story though; it would make a good book. Sadly, this is not that book.
March 29, 2016
The authors illiteration gets in the way of the story. He also goes off on tangets in trying to fit in facts about killer whales. I really just wanted to read about Keiko and what happened to the whale. Would still recommend the book, it was very interesting and makes you think about Sea World and Marineland and how bizaar the concept of keeping a massive whale in a tank is!
March 16, 2014
Interesting but too long, too much detail.
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