What do you think?
Rate this book
52 Blue
At a remote military base in the Pacific Northwest, Navy sonar technicians hear a confounding sound. It is the voice of a whale, but one that sings at a frequency—52 hertz—never before heard by scientists, and inaudible to other members of its species. The whale seems to be alone in the Pacific Ocean, unable to communicate with its kind.
Three thousand miles away, in an apartment in Harlem, a sudden illness plunges a 48-year-old woman named Leonora into a coma. She wakes up in a hospital room, barely able to speak, adrift in the world. Wandering the Internet late one night she discovers the saga of the whale—and finds her life transformed by the power of its story.
In 52 Blue, Leslie Jamison, bestselling author of The Empathy Exams, weaves together these stories in a boldly original exploration of scientific discovery refracted through the lens of human longing. Venturing into the community of people gathering in a mysterious animal’s wake—a brilliant marine biologist, a lovelorn photographer covered in whale tattoos, an obsessed filmmaker, and finally Leonora—Jamison comes away with an absorbing meditation on what it means to be alone, and how we seek meaning from the natural world.
Three thousand miles away, in an apartment in Harlem, a sudden illness plunges a 48-year-old woman named Leonora into a coma. She wakes up in a hospital room, barely able to speak, adrift in the world. Wandering the Internet late one night she discovers the saga of the whale—and finds her life transformed by the power of its story.
In 52 Blue, Leslie Jamison, bestselling author of The Empathy Exams, weaves together these stories in a boldly original exploration of scientific discovery refracted through the lens of human longing. Venturing into the community of people gathering in a mysterious animal’s wake—a brilliant marine biologist, a lovelorn photographer covered in whale tattoos, an obsessed filmmaker, and finally Leonora—Jamison comes away with an absorbing meditation on what it means to be alone, and how we seek meaning from the natural world.
72 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 26, 2014
19 people are currently reading
467 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
January 3, 2021
The REAL reason whales beach themselves is, they're trying to get to the local library.
A magnificently written treatise on the despair of loneliness. The juxtaposition of whale story with human story (stories) was a masterstroke. This short, non-fiction book will probably never get the attention it deserves...unlike the whale who becomes more famous every day. I just loved the delicious detail this young author dishes out, and the way she arranges it on the plate in interwoven threads.
The hero is a blue whale whose song is at 52 KHz; uniquely high for a whale. Naturally, the whale is assumed to be unable to communicate with its aquatic chums and unable to find a cheese-and-kisses (rhyming slang for "missus" you non-Aussies)("missus" is slang for wife/partner you non-human beings). So 52 Blue gains social media fame as "The loneliest whale in the world". Of course, this causes the lunatic fringe to go into rhapsodies of opinion ranging from just-plain-silly, to what-happened-to-the-other-99.99%-of-your-brain crazy. However, the story touched a lot of people in a positive way and Leslie Jamison tells their story so well. Side Note: I had a sneaking suspicion that Leonora might be a little loopy as well as inspirational.
While I enjoyed the story five-stars worth, and you probably will too, we need a reality check. REALITY CHECK: The author is convinced 52 Blue is a blue whale, but the Woods Hole Institute has not found any evidence to prove this. It could be any of a few species of whale. It no longer sings at 52 KHz, it sings at 46.9 KHz, presumably because it has grown.
Most importantly: There is no evidence the whale is lonely. I like to think it's like me - somewhere between an introvert and an autistic. I hope, like me, it likes its own company, and hates parties and likes reading books. (Hey! Don't judge. I know whales can't read - they don't have anyone to hold the book in front of their eyes.)
A magnificently written treatise on the despair of loneliness. The juxtaposition of whale story with human story (stories) was a masterstroke. This short, non-fiction book will probably never get the attention it deserves...unlike the whale who becomes more famous every day. I just loved the delicious detail this young author dishes out, and the way she arranges it on the plate in interwoven threads.
The hero is a blue whale whose song is at 52 KHz; uniquely high for a whale. Naturally, the whale is assumed to be unable to communicate with its aquatic chums and unable to find a cheese-and-kisses (rhyming slang for "missus" you non-Aussies)("missus" is slang for wife/partner you non-human beings). So 52 Blue gains social media fame as "The loneliest whale in the world". Of course, this causes the lunatic fringe to go into rhapsodies of opinion ranging from just-plain-silly, to what-happened-to-the-other-99.99%-of-your-brain crazy. However, the story touched a lot of people in a positive way and Leslie Jamison tells their story so well. Side Note: I had a sneaking suspicion that Leonora might be a little loopy as well as inspirational.
While I enjoyed the story five-stars worth, and you probably will too, we need a reality check. REALITY CHECK: The author is convinced 52 Blue is a blue whale, but the Woods Hole Institute has not found any evidence to prove this. It could be any of a few species of whale. It no longer sings at 52 KHz, it sings at 46.9 KHz, presumably because it has grown.
Most importantly: There is no evidence the whale is lonely. I like to think it's like me - somewhere between an introvert and an autistic. I hope, like me, it likes its own company, and hates parties and likes reading books. (Hey! Don't judge. I know whales can't read - they don't have anyone to hold the book in front of their eyes.)
September 3, 2014
Another great piece of work from Leslie Jamison. What moved me most about her exploration of the titular whale was her insistence on examining him as both creature and as metaphor, and her fearlessness and thoughtfulness of interrogating the boundaries of understanding or treating the whale as either. The last passage captures this beautifully. Atavist is doing such cool stuff.
December 3, 2023
In "52 Blue," Leslie Jamison unveils a lyrical meditation that transcends the boundaries of the conventional essay. With a prose style that can only be described as refined, Jamison navigates the depths of human experience, using the enigmatic story of the solitary whale's song to explore themes of loneliness, connection, and the expansive realm of the emotional spectrum. Each carefully crafted sentence resonates with a quiet profundity, inviting readers into a contemplative space where the profound and the mundane converge. Jamison's exquisite command of language, coupled with her intellectual dexterity, transforms "52 Blue" into an eloquent testament to the universal human yearning for connection, resonating long after the final page is turned. This contemplative work stands as a testament to Jamison's literary finesse, affirming her status as a masterful essayist with an unparalleled ability to probe the depths of the human condition with grace and intelligence.
June 22, 2023
52 is a lonely whale. His songs were first heard in 1989, and have continued, becoming more frequent since 2014. He has never been spotted or seen, and sings on a frequency--52hertz- that no other whale does.
Leslie went looking for him via the people who listened to him, or identified with him.
Leslie is an amazing wordsmith and 52 is an enigma, invisible and something of an aquatic fairytale.
Leslie went looking for him via the people who listened to him, or identified with him.
Leslie is an amazing wordsmith and 52 is an enigma, invisible and something of an aquatic fairytale.
March 12, 2018
Read this the day I finished “Good Morning, Midnight,” a beautiful book about loneliness - how both setting and character can be isolating. I have high regard for Jamison from her brilliant “Empathy Exams.” This was right in her wheelhouse, but I got the feeling she wanted to be more expansive, that the piece was heavily edited.
May 28, 2020
'52 Blue' is a short and beautiful story about the stories of this mysterious whale. Being told how the public view this lonesome giant makes this book difficult to put down, mainly because I love books about people. Jamison uses beautiful language to describe this immense creature and it was a wholesome read.
August 24, 2019
exquisite
April 11, 2020
Some lovely writing, but this narrative felt a little too earnest for my taste. A quick read and fun to be able to picture Whidbey Island as I had just been there in person in February!
September 4, 2014
Somewhere out in the Pacific Ocean lives a blue whale whose call is much deeper than its fellow whales, at 52 hertz; most blue whales operate between 15 and 20 hertz. '52 Blue', as the whale was dubbed after it was first discovered in 1992, has never been sighted, but its very existence has opened the door to a raft of human metaphor and fantasy about what's been described as the 'loneliest whale in the world'.
In this beautifully told story for The Atavist, journalist and author Leslie Jamison explores the remarkable affection and reverence with which many similarly lonely humans think of '52 Blue'. This is the first time I've purchased a story from The Atavist, which produces long-form stories each month for USD$3.99 a pop. I'm so glad I read this fantastically immersive story, and look forward to delving into the publication's archives. I read this story in one sitting, and I encourage you to do the same.
In this beautifully told story for The Atavist, journalist and author Leslie Jamison explores the remarkable affection and reverence with which many similarly lonely humans think of '52 Blue'. This is the first time I've purchased a story from The Atavist, which produces long-form stories each month for USD$3.99 a pop. I'm so glad I read this fantastically immersive story, and look forward to delving into the publication's archives. I read this story in one sitting, and I encourage you to do the same.
January 27, 2015
Interesting material though inexpertly handled. Essentially a long meditation on loneliness and aloneness using 52 Blue as the story and metaphor. 52 Blue, for those who might be unaware is (apparently) a blue whale who sounds at such a low frequency, 52 Hertz, no other whale can hear and respond. No companion, no pod, no mate. The narrative wanders in its middle chapters because of the sparseness of information about the whale and would have been strengthened with some cetacean natural history to buttress the story. As it is, I am left with the feeling of a missed opportunity regarding the subject. Still, an arresting thought and image for certain minds.
September 9, 2014
I'm going to estimate that this deserves 500% of the attention it will ultimately get. It is not a shining beacon blazing a new trail in the nonfiction epublishing world, but it is a lot more than its boring cover and sort of intriguing blurbs make it out to be. if you have an interest in the way culture is changing in our confusing modern times, this is for you. transmodern anthropology? digitized emotion studies? I don't know.
October 26, 2016
A piece that discovers why people gets so connected to a lonely whale and whether it's good or not. The structure is a bit misleading: the parallel between the whale and the woman in coma made me expect more, but what follows fail to satisfy this expectation. As a Chinese, the act of attaching human feelings to the nature is very common, and the debate over whether it's right to do so feels ancient.
October 1, 2014
Um. Wow. This was so terrible. This book is what happens when you interview people from a Facebook fan page and site things from Twitter. The human stories tied into the whale's story was hardly compelling. I can't believe I spent 2.99 on this.
May 7, 2015
Leslie Jamison doing what she do: introducing her readers to something mystifying and magical, then critically analyzing and meditating on it for just the right amount of time to leave them more knowledgable, but still very much entranced. A playful, informative, and heartbreaking short staccato.
March 23, 2018
When a whale is more than just a whale
It's fascinating how even the author see something of herself in this whale nobody has ever even seen. How do we crave company when we think we just don't fit.
It's fascinating how even the author see something of herself in this whale nobody has ever even seen. How do we crave company when we think we just don't fit.
October 27, 2014
Important and close to me.
Read
July 20, 2025I wish they go into more depth on the whale.
October 23, 2020
Loneliness seeks metaphor
Beautiful story about the loneliest whale on Earth named 52 Blue and an incredible introduction to Leslie Jamison's work.
Beautiful story about the loneliest whale on Earth named 52 Blue and an incredible introduction to Leslie Jamison's work.
June 24, 2016
Not quite sure what the point of the book was. But it was interesting.
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews