What do you think?
Rate this book
Read and Wonder
Narwhal: The Arctic Unicorn
Discover the majestic unicorn of the sea.
With a and a creak, the frozen sea begins to melt—the ice splits apart and a new pathway forms.
As winter comes to an end, a pod of narwhals begins a treacherous journey north. Along the way, they must find fish to eat, avoid a hungry polar bear, and navigate the maze of sea ice. Will their sensitive long spiral tusks and clicking calls be enough to keep them safe and help them find their way to their summer resting grounds?
With a and a creak, the frozen sea begins to melt—the ice splits apart and a new pathway forms.
As winter comes to an end, a pod of narwhals begins a treacherous journey north. Along the way, they must find fish to eat, avoid a hungry polar bear, and navigate the maze of sea ice. Will their sensitive long spiral tusks and clicking calls be enough to keep them safe and help them find their way to their summer resting grounds?
24 pages, Hardcover
Published October 18, 2022
50 people want to read
About the author
Justin Anderson
7 books3 followersJustin Anderson is a zoologist and filmmaker with a passion for animals and wild places. He spent months in Ladakh leading a BBC crew filming snow leopards for Planet Earth II. Snow Leopard: Ghost of the Mountains is his picture book debut. Justin Anderson lives in England.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
August 4, 2023
really interesting life and times of a Narwhal and the hardships they face with a sprinkle of facts.
March 11, 2025
The annual migration of a pod of narwhals northward, as they travel from their winter swimming grounds to the high Arctic islands for the summer months, is chronicled in this gorgeous non-fiction picture book from British author/illustrator team Justin Anderson and Jo Weaver. Led by an older narwhal who has lived fifty years, they make their way through a narrow path in the ice, with young born along the way. They hunt for food in the far northern waters, swim with belugas, and avoid predatory killer whales. The narrative concludes as the narwhals make their way south again, and the book closes with a note about narwhals and their future, a list of further information and an index...
Published in 2022, Narwhal: The Arctic Unicorn is zoologist and documentary filmmaker Justin Anderson's second picture book, following upon his 2019 Snow Leopard: Ghost of the Mountains , which I have already requested from the library. It is engaging and well-told, with a main narrative that focuses on the old narwhal and his pod, and factual asides about narwhals on each two-page spread. The accompanying artwork from Scottish illustrator Jo Weaver, who has created a number of picture books of her own, is just lovely. Created using charcoal and then colored digitally, the visuals here are somewhat dark, capturing the under-ice world through which the narwhals move, and the harsh beauty of the above-water landscape surrounding them. I liked that the book opened with a brief note about the mystery of the narwhal's tusk, whose purpose is still debated.
I heartily recommend this one to any picture book readers interested in narwhals and/or arctic wildlife in general. I read it in conjunction with Candace Fleming & Deena So'Oteh's Narwhal: Unicorn of the Arctic , which I also recommend. That more recent (2024) picture book is a little more informative than this one, which is a brief 24 pages, although I think that this one has the superior illustrations.
Published in 2022, Narwhal: The Arctic Unicorn is zoologist and documentary filmmaker Justin Anderson's second picture book, following upon his 2019 Snow Leopard: Ghost of the Mountains , which I have already requested from the library. It is engaging and well-told, with a main narrative that focuses on the old narwhal and his pod, and factual asides about narwhals on each two-page spread. The accompanying artwork from Scottish illustrator Jo Weaver, who has created a number of picture books of her own, is just lovely. Created using charcoal and then colored digitally, the visuals here are somewhat dark, capturing the under-ice world through which the narwhals move, and the harsh beauty of the above-water landscape surrounding them. I liked that the book opened with a brief note about the mystery of the narwhal's tusk, whose purpose is still debated.
I heartily recommend this one to any picture book readers interested in narwhals and/or arctic wildlife in general. I read it in conjunction with Candace Fleming & Deena So'Oteh's Narwhal: Unicorn of the Arctic , which I also recommend. That more recent (2024) picture book is a little more informative than this one, which is a brief 24 pages, although I think that this one has the superior illustrations.
Read
September 26, 2022See my full review here: https://www.yabookscentral.com/narwha...
NARWHAL: THE ARCTIC UNICORN is a story about the Narwhal journey north, primarily following an older Narwhal and his pod. The book explains what they are doing along the way as well as the dangers and predators they must face. Additional text on each spread gives more factual details about narwhals in the situations shown.
What I loved: This is an informative story about narwhals and their journey. The text is long enough to tell the story but also includes smaller text to give additional details and context (such as explaining what makes up a narwhal pod) on each page spread. The narwhals and other animals are drawn with great detail. The backmatter includes more information to start children on the path to learning even more about these arctic unicorns.
What left me wanting more: The story does not quite pull the reader in the way that fictionalized accounts might typically. While it talks a bit about the old narwhal, it does not give them a name or add any emotions to the story, in the documentary style, which will work better for some readers rather than others. The images use muted colors as well that will work better for older readers. The focus does remain on the dangers, with polar bears and killer whales shown as predators (though not actively eating), which may be tough for sensitive readers. However, these are accurate per nature and give the whole picture of why this can be a dangerous journey.
Final verdict: NARWHAL: THE ARCTIC UNICORN is an educational picture book that will work well for elementary school aged readers who enjoy learning about animals.
NARWHAL: THE ARCTIC UNICORN is a story about the Narwhal journey north, primarily following an older Narwhal and his pod. The book explains what they are doing along the way as well as the dangers and predators they must face. Additional text on each spread gives more factual details about narwhals in the situations shown.
What I loved: This is an informative story about narwhals and their journey. The text is long enough to tell the story but also includes smaller text to give additional details and context (such as explaining what makes up a narwhal pod) on each page spread. The narwhals and other animals are drawn with great detail. The backmatter includes more information to start children on the path to learning even more about these arctic unicorns.
What left me wanting more: The story does not quite pull the reader in the way that fictionalized accounts might typically. While it talks a bit about the old narwhal, it does not give them a name or add any emotions to the story, in the documentary style, which will work better for some readers rather than others. The images use muted colors as well that will work better for older readers. The focus does remain on the dangers, with polar bears and killer whales shown as predators (though not actively eating), which may be tough for sensitive readers. However, these are accurate per nature and give the whole picture of why this can be a dangerous journey.
Final verdict: NARWHAL: THE ARCTIC UNICORN is an educational picture book that will work well for elementary school aged readers who enjoy learning about animals.
October 2, 2024
Narwals are an often misunderstood creatures. This delightful picture book does a beautiful job of giving you more facts about this creature. It lists facts but also writes a beautiful story about some of its behaviors and where it goes depending on the season. I was surprised how much I learned within its pages.
The illustrations are gorgeous and beautifully done. A few of them were very dark but I think it is trying to portray how deep in the ocean they are. They seem like they are done with charcoal or oil pastels.
The illustrations are gorgeous and beautifully done. A few of them were very dark but I think it is trying to portray how deep in the ocean they are. They seem like they are done with charcoal or oil pastels.
August 28, 2023
The story follows a narwhal pod through a season showing us what really happens in the day-to-day life of narwhals. And a lot happens! There's plenty of action and also happy moments. Beyond the story, pages have additional facts to support the text. Gorgeous art brings the narwhals and other whales featured alive on the page.
Overall, I highly recommend this interesting, engaging, and beautifully illustrated book.
Overall, I highly recommend this interesting, engaging, and beautifully illustrated book.
February 1, 2024
This book offers an interesting point of view about the fascinating world of the Narwhals. It is an accurate resource to learn a bit more about these animals, how and where they live but also their possible threats.
Illustrations offer the possibility to have a clearer idea about how they look like (if you haven’t seen them before) and also how their environment look likes but always keeping that gently tone for kids.
Illustrations offer the possibility to have a clearer idea about how they look like (if you haven’t seen them before) and also how their environment look likes but always keeping that gently tone for kids.
February 10, 2023
Learned so many things about narwhals! Narwhals were mentioned in the Vancouver Aquarium at the beluga whale exhibit, but narwhals don’t do well in captivity. Back note discusses their future. Wish there was more back matter. Author is a zoologist. Illustrations are in a dark palette which sometimes makes some of the text hard to read. Would love a photo in the book and a bigger map.
Read
September 13, 2022It was a great book about narwhals. I like when books do the story text and then in smaller print add in some more facts. Even the story part read as nonfiction. I get that they're under the sea, but some of the illustrations are still a bit dark. I wouldn't use it for storytime at all.
December 19, 2023
Fantastic
This is a very informative book with beautiful illustrations. There were little tidbits of additional information that helped explain some terminology and provided trivia. A definite recommend . I found it in my library.
This is a very informative book with beautiful illustrations. There were little tidbits of additional information that helped explain some terminology and provided trivia. A definite recommend . I found it in my library.
August 18, 2022
Don’t mind me, just looking for crumbs of serotonin in yet to be released picture books
November 4, 2022
Lovely illustrations, if a bit muted compared to other picture books. Love all of the facts about narwhals. A good addition for kids who like to be read stories and like learning.
November 6, 2022
Lovely narrative nonfiction about these mysterious creatures. The illustrations are nice but a little dark for a read aloud.
November 30, 2023
Well written and fascinating, I learned so much! I kept exclaiming out loud. Definitely recommend.
April 14, 2024
Fantastic illustration but wish the was better contrast between illustration and text on some of the pages.
April 18, 2025
I learned a lot in this short informational text!
December 20, 2024
I liked the little facts on each page. This book was cool and would be great for a young reader working on research skills.
My only negative is that many of the illustrations were very dark and it would be really difficult for someone with low vision to see the images or, on some pages, read the text.
My only negative is that many of the illustrations were very dark and it would be really difficult for someone with low vision to see the images or, on some pages, read the text.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews