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Pod
Bestselling author of The Bees Laline Paull returns with a transformative new novel of an ocean world and its extraordinary creatures, mysteries, and mythologies.
Once upon a time like now, two estranged dolphin tribes live at opposite ends of a remote tropical archipelago. At one end, where the water is cleaner, lives a tiny pod of spinner dolphins, spiritually refined and matriarchal. At the other is the raucous megapod of bottlenose dolphins, who once drove the gentle spinners from their home but now live in increasingly painful acoustic conditions -- which they believe are caused by warring ocean demons. Circling the archipelago is a lone humpback whale, who sings warning to his people about the new perils of the old routes. And caught between the sanctuary of family and the vast unknown is a young spinner dolphin about to make the ultimate sacrifice. The ocean is changing beyond recognition, and every forced migration for survival spells new conflict.
In this epic, propulsive novel, Laline Paull explores the meaning of belonging, sanctuary, and courage in a metamorphosing undersea world increasingly haunted by the cruelty and ignorance of the human race.
Once upon a time like now, two estranged dolphin tribes live at opposite ends of a remote tropical archipelago. At one end, where the water is cleaner, lives a tiny pod of spinner dolphins, spiritually refined and matriarchal. At the other is the raucous megapod of bottlenose dolphins, who once drove the gentle spinners from their home but now live in increasingly painful acoustic conditions -- which they believe are caused by warring ocean demons. Circling the archipelago is a lone humpback whale, who sings warning to his people about the new perils of the old routes. And caught between the sanctuary of family and the vast unknown is a young spinner dolphin about to make the ultimate sacrifice. The ocean is changing beyond recognition, and every forced migration for survival spells new conflict.
In this epic, propulsive novel, Laline Paull explores the meaning of belonging, sanctuary, and courage in a metamorphosing undersea world increasingly haunted by the cruelty and ignorance of the human race.
272 pages, Paperback
First published February 9, 2022
289 people are currently reading
12052 people want to read
About the author
Laline Paull
3 books905 followersMy heartfelt thanks to every reader of my work: you have given it your time, your attention, and whether or not you liked it or felt repaid, you engaged - even for a little while if DNF. Thank you for your generosity in sharing your positive feedback, or your heartfelt reasons for your aversion. Writers are fortunate in that we can calibrate all that against our growing awareness of what we want to do.
As authors, we put ourselves out there and as readers we do that too, hoping to find that communion with other minds, maybe even souls, through stories. None of us would be here on Goodreads if we didn’t believe that there was something truly important in the quest for making and reading, truly good books.
Best wishes
Laline
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May 12, 2023
4.25⭐
*Shortlisted for the 2023 Women’s Prize for Fiction*
“Each pod has pride and virtue, each feels above the other. They do not know they share one fatal flaw: they think they know this ocean.”
Atmospheric and immersive Laline Paull’s Pod takes us on an exploration of cetacean life both in its beauty and in the struggle for survival against threats – from environmental and man-made to the struggle among various species of marine life for dwindling resources for sustenance and a safe space to call home.
The narrative is shared by Ea, a spinner dolphin separated from her pod after a tragedy who ultimately ends up forced to become a member of the Megapod of bottlenose dolphins; a lone Rorqual whale whose sad song Ea hears; a giant Napoleon Wrasse who also finds himself alone; and Google, a military-trained dolphin who has spent most of his life in the company of “anthrops”. In the course of the story, we also meet a parasitic Remora fish that attaches itself to Ea and the salpa salpa, tranquilizer fish that are consumed for their ability to induce sleep and help with pain among the cetacean creatures.
In presenting the story from these unique PoVs and depicting the affection and unity amongst those in the same pod, the empathy and concern for one another and how they are often helpless in the face of exploitation and external interference, the author does a brilliant job of humanizing these sea creatures. The author’s impeccable research is evident in how she describes oceanic life. The author’s vivid imagery of the depths of the ocean and marine life as seen from the perspective of its inhabitants as their perception of the world above and the “demons” that threaten their way of life and their very existence is stunning in its detail. The author is unflinching when she talks about how human interference has resulted in dwindling populations of ocean life, unsafe and polluted living conditions and has disrupted the marine ecosystem and the life cycles and habits of the different species. Ultimately, this is a story of family, sacrifice, loss and survival in the face of life-threatening forces beyond one’s control.
“Their homewater was no more, powerful devils were ripping the ocean apart and their screaming was killing pods of pilots, of humpbacks, of dolphins. There were nets of death where once was open water, there were great rents in the seabed. Death was everywhere, people were fleeing, the ocean was either full of refugees or terrifyingly empty.”
Please note that this is not an easy story to read. This is not anthropomorphism for amusement or comic effect. It is far from that. While this novel isn’t a lengthy story, it is a heavy one. It ventures into dark territory with instances of violence, assault, descriptions of mass casualties of marine animals and much more.
As the author writes in her Note:
“A changing ocean, becoming inexplicably hostile. The struggle for resources, the anxiety, the anger. The ocean is full of miracles, not least the fact that it gives us the oxygen for every other breath we take. Our survival is inextricably linked to ocean health, yet our species continues to degrade and exploit it. Terrible details to face, yet countless wonders. How could we do this to our world? How can we stop it?”
Heartbreaking yet informative and enlightening, Pod by Laline Paull is a relevant and timely story that conveys an important message. It is surely a story that will stay with me.
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*Shortlisted for the 2023 Women’s Prize for Fiction*
“Each pod has pride and virtue, each feels above the other. They do not know they share one fatal flaw: they think they know this ocean.”
Atmospheric and immersive Laline Paull’s Pod takes us on an exploration of cetacean life both in its beauty and in the struggle for survival against threats – from environmental and man-made to the struggle among various species of marine life for dwindling resources for sustenance and a safe space to call home.
The narrative is shared by Ea, a spinner dolphin separated from her pod after a tragedy who ultimately ends up forced to become a member of the Megapod of bottlenose dolphins; a lone Rorqual whale whose sad song Ea hears; a giant Napoleon Wrasse who also finds himself alone; and Google, a military-trained dolphin who has spent most of his life in the company of “anthrops”. In the course of the story, we also meet a parasitic Remora fish that attaches itself to Ea and the salpa salpa, tranquilizer fish that are consumed for their ability to induce sleep and help with pain among the cetacean creatures.
In presenting the story from these unique PoVs and depicting the affection and unity amongst those in the same pod, the empathy and concern for one another and how they are often helpless in the face of exploitation and external interference, the author does a brilliant job of humanizing these sea creatures. The author’s impeccable research is evident in how she describes oceanic life. The author’s vivid imagery of the depths of the ocean and marine life as seen from the perspective of its inhabitants as their perception of the world above and the “demons” that threaten their way of life and their very existence is stunning in its detail. The author is unflinching when she talks about how human interference has resulted in dwindling populations of ocean life, unsafe and polluted living conditions and has disrupted the marine ecosystem and the life cycles and habits of the different species. Ultimately, this is a story of family, sacrifice, loss and survival in the face of life-threatening forces beyond one’s control.
“Their homewater was no more, powerful devils were ripping the ocean apart and their screaming was killing pods of pilots, of humpbacks, of dolphins. There were nets of death where once was open water, there were great rents in the seabed. Death was everywhere, people were fleeing, the ocean was either full of refugees or terrifyingly empty.”
Please note that this is not an easy story to read. This is not anthropomorphism for amusement or comic effect. It is far from that. While this novel isn’t a lengthy story, it is a heavy one. It ventures into dark territory with instances of violence, assault, descriptions of mass casualties of marine animals and much more.
As the author writes in her Note:
“A changing ocean, becoming inexplicably hostile. The struggle for resources, the anxiety, the anger. The ocean is full of miracles, not least the fact that it gives us the oxygen for every other breath we take. Our survival is inextricably linked to ocean health, yet our species continues to degrade and exploit it. Terrible details to face, yet countless wonders. How could we do this to our world? How can we stop it?”
Heartbreaking yet informative and enlightening, Pod by Laline Paull is a relevant and timely story that conveys an important message. It is surely a story that will stay with me.
Connect with me!
My Blog
The StoryGraph
March 4, 2025
Arresting but oh-so-brutal. Reminiscent of Hollow Kingdom (but without the first-person narratives and abundant humor). Even so, once Pod hooked me, it didn't let me go.
Want to see my 16 Must Read Women's Prize Nominees on BookTube? Come join me at Hello, Bookworm.📚🐛
This book also features in my BookTube deep dive on the weirdest Women's Prize nominees . 👀
This incredibly ambitious book escorts readers to the ocean’s depths for an arresting and brutal story that centers on a pack of spinner dolphins whose home waters are being destroyed by humans.
Though the dolphins take center stage, this is a book with a rich, complex story woven with several aquatic characters, and they each receive sufficient time on the page to materialize as interesting and sympathetic characters.
Pod explores the consequences of over-fishing and polluting the ocean, the environmental implications of certain military practices, gender fluidity, male aggression, and more. The result is a confrontational, eye-opening book that lingers on the mind long after the final page has been read. Highly recommend for mature readers!
Want to see my 16 Must Read Women's Prize Nominees on BookTube? Come join me at Hello, Bookworm.📚🐛
This book also features in my BookTube deep dive on the weirdest Women's Prize nominees . 👀
This incredibly ambitious book escorts readers to the ocean’s depths for an arresting and brutal story that centers on a pack of spinner dolphins whose home waters are being destroyed by humans.
Though the dolphins take center stage, this is a book with a rich, complex story woven with several aquatic characters, and they each receive sufficient time on the page to materialize as interesting and sympathetic characters.
Pod explores the consequences of over-fishing and polluting the ocean, the environmental implications of certain military practices, gender fluidity, male aggression, and more. The result is a confrontational, eye-opening book that lingers on the mind long after the final page has been read. Highly recommend for mature readers!
May 2, 2023
CW: Rape/sexual assault, animal cruelty, violence
I usually try to be respectful of other people’s opinions on books but people giving this a low rating because of the scenes of rape are absolutely astounding to me.
The scenes are never graphic and certainly not gratuitous; only enough detail is given to make you understand what’s happening, no more. It’s upsetting, because it’s supposed to be, but it’s not lingered upon unnecessarily. Dolphins can be arseholes. They’ve been known to rape each other. Paull didn’t sanitise this, and she wrote it in a sensitive way that also cast parallels on misogyny within human society.
If you didn’t like it, I understand. It’s tough to hear. This whole novel is tough to hear, because what’s happening to our oceans is an unbearable catastrophe that we must nevertheless face, and try to remedy.
This is a novel that calls for compassion, action, and accountability. Is it perfect? Obviously not. Are you entitled to hate it? Obviously. But this novel carries a valuable message, written in Paull’s signature knife-sharp prose that will make you shed a few tears, but close the last page with a tentative little thread of hope.
I usually try to be respectful of other people’s opinions on books but people giving this a low rating because of the scenes of rape are absolutely astounding to me.
The scenes are never graphic and certainly not gratuitous; only enough detail is given to make you understand what’s happening, no more. It’s upsetting, because it’s supposed to be, but it’s not lingered upon unnecessarily. Dolphins can be arseholes. They’ve been known to rape each other. Paull didn’t sanitise this, and she wrote it in a sensitive way that also cast parallels on misogyny within human society.
If you didn’t like it, I understand. It’s tough to hear. This whole novel is tough to hear, because what’s happening to our oceans is an unbearable catastrophe that we must nevertheless face, and try to remedy.
This is a novel that calls for compassion, action, and accountability. Is it perfect? Obviously not. Are you entitled to hate it? Obviously. But this novel carries a valuable message, written in Paull’s signature knife-sharp prose that will make you shed a few tears, but close the last page with a tentative little thread of hope.
May 12, 2023
5/10
Confession time: I was scared to finish this book!
"The truth is hard to believe, harder to bear"
Under the Sea is described beautifully, with animals that think like humans and a narrative from Ea the spinner dolphin, Rorqual the lone whale, Devi the alpha, and Google the military-trained lone dolphin.
Unfortunately, as the story progresses, it becomes increasingly violent and sad, with death and sorrow looming over the characters. I hate to give up a book and hate more to rate it without finishing it, but this book is a creative and excellent ocean description, albeit unpleasant, and should be a warning for those considering reading it.
Many thanks to Little, Brown Book Group UK via Netgalley for giving me a chance to read "Pod" by Laline Paull, I have given my honest review.
Confession time: I was scared to finish this book!
"The truth is hard to believe, harder to bear"
Under the Sea is described beautifully, with animals that think like humans and a narrative from Ea the spinner dolphin, Rorqual the lone whale, Devi the alpha, and Google the military-trained lone dolphin.
Unfortunately, as the story progresses, it becomes increasingly violent and sad, with death and sorrow looming over the characters. I hate to give up a book and hate more to rate it without finishing it, but this book is a creative and excellent ocean description, albeit unpleasant, and should be a warning for those considering reading it.
Many thanks to Little, Brown Book Group UK via Netgalley for giving me a chance to read "Pod" by Laline Paull, I have given my honest review.
April 29, 2022
My thanks to Little, Brown Book Group UK for an advanced copy via Netgalley of Laline Paull's 'Pod', in exchange for an honest review.
If I am being genuinely honest, I would have to say that I was disappointingly bewildered by all the competing voices in this novel. I might have enjoyed the read more if Paull had allowed me to follow one narrative with greater character depth and development, but my interest was scattered across too many disparate perspectives. The section narrated by the remora fish was vile, and the wrasse's point-of-view profoundly distracting. I did engage with Google, the military-trained lone dolphin, and the lone rorqual whale, but the novel felt fractured. Really, there was nothing keeping me reading apart from Ea's narrative. Everything else was bothersome distraction. Even saying that, Ea's story became less enjoyable once the remora fish was introduced.
'Pod' could have been cut in half, frankly, and been a more enjoyable read for me, personally.
Nor is this a novel where the quality of the writing might compensate for a weak plot or a fractured plot; the style of language used here is not poetical, it's quite devoid of subtle techniques, even down to the lack of dialogue (communication is mostly reported speech or italicised). The writing is straightforward and - if I'm honest - a bit pedestrian. I found swift changes in tense disorientating and I found myself unsure in parts where I was in time, according to the narrative (by that I mean, flashbacks or jumps in time were not sufficiently clarified). Repeatedly, there were sections of paragraphs that were difficult to parse. I think the author knew so well herself what she meant, that she did not stop to judge whether or not what she had actually written conveyed her mearning. I would add that the version I read was an advanced galley. However, it was surprisingly full of typographical errors and grammatical mistakes.
Overall, in Laline Paull's third book, I found my suspension of disbelief strained. I just could not quite believe that I was hearing a sea-creature's experience. The opposite, in fact, held true: all throughout, I was judging how well or how badly the author was inventing underwater perspectives or weighing up how much she had researched her subject. It does say something of the author's success that I was unable to surrender myself to the story completely. This book felt like an exercise in marine biology research, rather than an engaging piece of fiction.
Ultimately, I was outraged at the descriptions of animal rape in this book. It was hard enough to suspend disbelief in order to imagine I was listening to an animal narrate the story; it was harder still to withstand the frequent jumps in character points-of-view between animals; it was impossible for me to justify the author expecting me to tolerate reading about animals raping other animals. It's just not acceptable to me, and I would chalk this novel up as - to put it mildly - a severe disappointment, if not a cause of actual offense.
If I am being genuinely honest, I would have to say that I was disappointingly bewildered by all the competing voices in this novel. I might have enjoyed the read more if Paull had allowed me to follow one narrative with greater character depth and development, but my interest was scattered across too many disparate perspectives. The section narrated by the remora fish was vile, and the wrasse's point-of-view profoundly distracting. I did engage with Google, the military-trained lone dolphin, and the lone rorqual whale, but the novel felt fractured. Really, there was nothing keeping me reading apart from Ea's narrative. Everything else was bothersome distraction. Even saying that, Ea's story became less enjoyable once the remora fish was introduced.
'Pod' could have been cut in half, frankly, and been a more enjoyable read for me, personally.
Nor is this a novel where the quality of the writing might compensate for a weak plot or a fractured plot; the style of language used here is not poetical, it's quite devoid of subtle techniques, even down to the lack of dialogue (communication is mostly reported speech or italicised). The writing is straightforward and - if I'm honest - a bit pedestrian. I found swift changes in tense disorientating and I found myself unsure in parts where I was in time, according to the narrative (by that I mean, flashbacks or jumps in time were not sufficiently clarified). Repeatedly, there were sections of paragraphs that were difficult to parse. I think the author knew so well herself what she meant, that she did not stop to judge whether or not what she had actually written conveyed her mearning. I would add that the version I read was an advanced galley. However, it was surprisingly full of typographical errors and grammatical mistakes.
Overall, in Laline Paull's third book, I found my suspension of disbelief strained. I just could not quite believe that I was hearing a sea-creature's experience. The opposite, in fact, held true: all throughout, I was judging how well or how badly the author was inventing underwater perspectives or weighing up how much she had researched her subject. It does say something of the author's success that I was unable to surrender myself to the story completely. This book felt like an exercise in marine biology research, rather than an engaging piece of fiction.
Ultimately, I was outraged at the descriptions of animal rape in this book. It was hard enough to suspend disbelief in order to imagine I was listening to an animal narrate the story; it was harder still to withstand the frequent jumps in character points-of-view between animals; it was impossible for me to justify the author expecting me to tolerate reading about animals raping other animals. It's just not acceptable to me, and I would chalk this novel up as - to put it mildly - a severe disappointment, if not a cause of actual offense.
June 6, 2024
This book takes the reader into the depths of the sea. The primary storyline is that of Ea, a spinner dolphin, who starts life as part of her own species, but after a tragedy, ends up as a member of a large pod of bottlenose dolphins. Other perspectives are provided by a lone Rorqual whale singing a sad song, a giant hump head wrasse living alone near sea vents, a parasitic remora fish, and a military-trained dolphin who has spent most of his life in the company humans (called “anthrops” by the sea creatures). These creatures’ stories occasionally overlap and provide the big picture of what is going on in the ocean. It depicts the impact of humans, diminishing resources, warming of sea temperatures, and other environmental conditions.
It is atmospherically written, providing a sense of what it might be like to live in the sea. The large expanse of mostly uninhabited ocean is called “The Vast.” It provides both ends of the spectrum – the beauty of the sea and factors that threaten it. It depicts the struggles of marine life to adapt to the changes. At first, I was unsure if the perspectives of marine life would work but my fears proved unfounded. It inspires empathy for what these animals face in terms of the struggle for survival. It is obviously researched in terms of natural behaviors, nurturing of each other (especially the dolphins), and how it might feel to be at the mercy of dynamics well beyond their control.
It should be noted that life in the ocean is often brutal, and this story describes many dark episodes in the lives of these creatures, including violent attacks, mass killings, and die-offs. The author is unflinching in her depiction of the damage that humans have caused. I admit to shedding a few tears over the plight of these creatures, which was completely unexpected as I rarely cry over books. As the author points out in her Afterword: “The ocean is full of miracles, not least the fact that it gives us the oxygen for every other breath we take. Our survival is inextricably linked to ocean health, yet our species continues to degrade and exploit it. Terrible details to face, yet countless wonders. How could we do this to our world? How can we stop it?”
It is atmospherically written, providing a sense of what it might be like to live in the sea. The large expanse of mostly uninhabited ocean is called “The Vast.” It provides both ends of the spectrum – the beauty of the sea and factors that threaten it. It depicts the struggles of marine life to adapt to the changes. At first, I was unsure if the perspectives of marine life would work but my fears proved unfounded. It inspires empathy for what these animals face in terms of the struggle for survival. It is obviously researched in terms of natural behaviors, nurturing of each other (especially the dolphins), and how it might feel to be at the mercy of dynamics well beyond their control.
It should be noted that life in the ocean is often brutal, and this story describes many dark episodes in the lives of these creatures, including violent attacks, mass killings, and die-offs. The author is unflinching in her depiction of the damage that humans have caused. I admit to shedding a few tears over the plight of these creatures, which was completely unexpected as I rarely cry over books. As the author points out in her Afterword: “The ocean is full of miracles, not least the fact that it gives us the oxygen for every other breath we take. Our survival is inextricably linked to ocean health, yet our species continues to degrade and exploit it. Terrible details to face, yet countless wonders. How could we do this to our world? How can we stop it?”
May 28, 2023
my heart hurts. especially for google. poor baby.
December 15, 2023
https://www.instagram.com/p/C0zAAVorS...
The harsh political intrigue of Watership Down meets the majestic beauty of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea in this extraordinary, immersive coming of age Odyssey of transformation and discovery. Filled with lush prose and a gripping oceanic perspective of life and love, Pod is a chilling call to action against the real life horrors of pollution, animal cruelty, and overfishing. Filled with both the bleak and the hopeful, this is a novel that highlights the small moments of beauty and love in a world that is slowly filling with violence and decay; it is a wonderfully nuanced look into sacrifice, identity, and belonging; what makes a home when one is destroyed, and what makes a life worth living in a world on the edge. Unflinching, raw, and wonderfully engaging, Pod is both refreshing and terrifying in its glimpse into the lives we seldom think about under the waves.
The harsh political intrigue of Watership Down meets the majestic beauty of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea in this extraordinary, immersive coming of age Odyssey of transformation and discovery. Filled with lush prose and a gripping oceanic perspective of life and love, Pod is a chilling call to action against the real life horrors of pollution, animal cruelty, and overfishing. Filled with both the bleak and the hopeful, this is a novel that highlights the small moments of beauty and love in a world that is slowly filling with violence and decay; it is a wonderfully nuanced look into sacrifice, identity, and belonging; what makes a home when one is destroyed, and what makes a life worth living in a world on the edge. Unflinching, raw, and wonderfully engaging, Pod is both refreshing and terrifying in its glimpse into the lives we seldom think about under the waves.
May 28, 2022
I loved this. They say novels are your way into others’ minds. I can now think and feel like a dolphin, a wrasse fish and a whale. Brilliant.
May 11, 2023
When I heard that Laline Paull’s Pod had been longlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction, my reaction was as follows: ‘I did not enjoy Paull’s The Bees, which read like a bad YA dystopia, and while I had more mixed feelings about her second novel, The Ice, there’s no way I’m picking up a book by her from the point of view of a dolphin.’ Once Pod was shortlisted for the Prize, and having read some glowing reviews of the novel as well as some terrible ones, I was tempted to give it a try. And on the whole, I’m glad I did. Pod is indeed primarily told from the point of view of a dolphin – spinner dolphin Ea, who is isolated from her pod because she cannot hear the sounds of the ocean in the same way her fellow dolphins do. However! We also get the points of view of MANY other dolphins, including bottlenose Google, who once worked for the military; a ‘lordmale’ wrasse fish; a poisonous fugu fish; a Rorqual whale; and a quasi-parasitic Remora. Lucky us!
As this suggests, this book is quite bizarre, and yet it worked a lot better for me than Paull’s previous foray into anthropomorphism in The Bees. Why? First, dolphins are obviously a lot closer to humans than bees, so Paull’s humanisation of her aquatic characters made a lot more sense in this novel, and she was able to explore how dolphins might think much more convincingly. (As I learnt from Audrey Schulman’s The Dolphin House, dolphins have very advanced linguistic capabilities, although Paull does lean towards making them ‘human’ rather than truly trying to enter the mind of a dolphin, which is probably impossible). Second, Pod doesn’t have the ‘YA dystopian’ elements that made The Bees such a slog for me. There are a few hints of it – character that’s Not Like Other Girls! Instalove! – but only in Ea’s story, and only occasionally. Third, the way that Paull uses point of view in Pod is quite clever, ranging between different creatures and groups that are linked by the ocean. At times, this really feels like watching an episode of Blue Planet, with David Attenborough narrating the characters’ motives – and Paull acknowledges both Blue Planet and Attenborough as inspirations. My favourite chapters were definitely the multivocal ones rather than the ones that focus on Ea.
My other worry about this book was that it was going to be very preachy and simplistic, especially as Paull has form for this in The Ice. But to my surprise, Paull avoids this, and gives us a genuinely fresh take on climate crisis. The sheer weirdness of the dolphins’ perspectives means that incidents like plastic pollution, for example, creep up on us rather than being obvious, as we’re also trying to work out why the oceans are changing. And because Paull spends a lot of time exploring the violent social order of the Tursiops pod of bottlenoses that capture Ea – including their frequent gang rapes – the book isn’t simply about dolphins as innocent victims of human action, but has more to say about how societies respond to crisis. (Some reviewers have felt that the amount of sexual violence in Pod is unnecessary, but it made sense to me given how sex functions in dolphin societies. Dolphins do take part in sexual coercion in gangs, but also, sex is central to how dolphins form social connections. It might have been better, though, to dial down the anthropomorphism of Ea here, which would have made the scenes read differently).
I’m not quite sure why this was either longlisted or shortlisted for the Women’s Prize; it’s just so weird, and reads like creative non-fiction rather than a novel. Because of that, I can’t really recommend it as fiction. I guess, for me, novels are about humans, and even eco-critical novels that successfully decentre humanity, like Richard Powers’ The Overstory, work because they are still full of complex people. Pod hobbles itself by writing characters that are not human, and not driven by human motivations, but who are still anthropomorphised. It’s also a slog to read, quite honestly. Nevertheless, I admired Paull’s ambition to write a very different kind of story, even if it didn’t quite come off. 3.5 stars.
As this suggests, this book is quite bizarre, and yet it worked a lot better for me than Paull’s previous foray into anthropomorphism in The Bees. Why? First, dolphins are obviously a lot closer to humans than bees, so Paull’s humanisation of her aquatic characters made a lot more sense in this novel, and she was able to explore how dolphins might think much more convincingly. (As I learnt from Audrey Schulman’s The Dolphin House, dolphins have very advanced linguistic capabilities, although Paull does lean towards making them ‘human’ rather than truly trying to enter the mind of a dolphin, which is probably impossible). Second, Pod doesn’t have the ‘YA dystopian’ elements that made The Bees such a slog for me. There are a few hints of it – character that’s Not Like Other Girls! Instalove! – but only in Ea’s story, and only occasionally. Third, the way that Paull uses point of view in Pod is quite clever, ranging between different creatures and groups that are linked by the ocean. At times, this really feels like watching an episode of Blue Planet, with David Attenborough narrating the characters’ motives – and Paull acknowledges both Blue Planet and Attenborough as inspirations. My favourite chapters were definitely the multivocal ones rather than the ones that focus on Ea.
My other worry about this book was that it was going to be very preachy and simplistic, especially as Paull has form for this in The Ice. But to my surprise, Paull avoids this, and gives us a genuinely fresh take on climate crisis. The sheer weirdness of the dolphins’ perspectives means that incidents like plastic pollution, for example, creep up on us rather than being obvious, as we’re also trying to work out why the oceans are changing. And because Paull spends a lot of time exploring the violent social order of the Tursiops pod of bottlenoses that capture Ea – including their frequent gang rapes – the book isn’t simply about dolphins as innocent victims of human action, but has more to say about how societies respond to crisis. (Some reviewers have felt that the amount of sexual violence in Pod is unnecessary, but it made sense to me given how sex functions in dolphin societies. Dolphins do take part in sexual coercion in gangs, but also, sex is central to how dolphins form social connections. It might have been better, though, to dial down the anthropomorphism of Ea here, which would have made the scenes read differently).
I’m not quite sure why this was either longlisted or shortlisted for the Women’s Prize; it’s just so weird, and reads like creative non-fiction rather than a novel. Because of that, I can’t really recommend it as fiction. I guess, for me, novels are about humans, and even eco-critical novels that successfully decentre humanity, like Richard Powers’ The Overstory, work because they are still full of complex people. Pod hobbles itself by writing characters that are not human, and not driven by human motivations, but who are still anthropomorphised. It’s also a slog to read, quite honestly. Nevertheless, I admired Paull’s ambition to write a very different kind of story, even if it didn’t quite come off. 3.5 stars.
January 19, 2023
Deeply odd and scary. I am terrified of dolphins.
April 14, 2022
My general takeaway from this book is that the sea is a horny place.
From many years of watching nature documentaries, this should be obvious to me. But I guess I didn’t realise just how big a hard-on the ocean generally has.
I bought this book, like most people, because I really enjoyed The Bees. The characters in that were anthropomorphised enough to be relatable, but they remained very much another species with their own rules and codes and world. The story was easy to follow without being too obvious and the main character was instantly likeable. The end was triumphant and I found myself invested in the whole thing, whilst learning a little at the same time.
I imagined Pod would be similar, but with Dolphins. Laline Paull does her homework on animals and their environment so I was chuffed to bits to get the novel as soon as it came out.
However, whilst some of the book was very good (I loved Google, was interested in the Rorqual and really wanted the Wrasse to triumph) other parts were draggy or just a bit gross. Is the sea gross? Well, yeah, turns out it is, but that doesn’t mean I necessarily want to wade through its sperm-choked waves witnessing multiple gang rapes and shit-eating remoras, I’ll be honest with you.
There were also just too many characters for me to truly get to know any of them. If it had been divided between Ea and Google I think it would have worked better, but the Wrasse (charming though he/she be) was a distraction and there was a whole chapter in first person from the remora’s point of view, and seeing as this dude loves sucking on sperm and faeces, I can’t say it was particularly enlightening. That’s not to say his kind are not important to the ocean, probably they are … but his obscene chucklings were grating and we never really learn much about him, other than he’s filthy and out for himself, and he just kinda … fizzles out. I struggle to fathom why he was included in the first place. Devi was another character I wanted to know more about, and Chit, but they were sidelined after a promising few chapters.
It would also have worked better for me if Ea had been a little more interesting herself. Mostly she’s indignant or guilty and, I GET IT, as that’s my general state of being, but I don’t think she achieved her potential. Or if she did, she did it off-screen, after the end credits.
There were also bits where the tense jumped around and sometimes it was narrative and other times back into the story. It wasn’t horrendous by any means, but it did break the immersion for me and that's something I was struggling with throughout. Its hard to stay invested in torn dolphin vaginas and erotic clams.
ANYWAY… apart from that, I liked parts of the book and Paull’s descriptions and message were both clearly received. Honestly, I hope for more works by her. I just don’t think I’ll be re-reading this again (I re-read The Bees at least once a year) - the sea is just too horny for me.
From many years of watching nature documentaries, this should be obvious to me. But I guess I didn’t realise just how big a hard-on the ocean generally has.
I bought this book, like most people, because I really enjoyed The Bees. The characters in that were anthropomorphised enough to be relatable, but they remained very much another species with their own rules and codes and world. The story was easy to follow without being too obvious and the main character was instantly likeable. The end was triumphant and I found myself invested in the whole thing, whilst learning a little at the same time.
I imagined Pod would be similar, but with Dolphins. Laline Paull does her homework on animals and their environment so I was chuffed to bits to get the novel as soon as it came out.
However, whilst some of the book was very good (I loved Google, was interested in the Rorqual and really wanted the Wrasse to triumph) other parts were draggy or just a bit gross. Is the sea gross? Well, yeah, turns out it is, but that doesn’t mean I necessarily want to wade through its sperm-choked waves witnessing multiple gang rapes and shit-eating remoras, I’ll be honest with you.
There were also just too many characters for me to truly get to know any of them. If it had been divided between Ea and Google I think it would have worked better, but the Wrasse (charming though he/she be) was a distraction and there was a whole chapter in first person from the remora’s point of view, and seeing as this dude loves sucking on sperm and faeces, I can’t say it was particularly enlightening. That’s not to say his kind are not important to the ocean, probably they are … but his obscene chucklings were grating and we never really learn much about him, other than he’s filthy and out for himself, and he just kinda … fizzles out. I struggle to fathom why he was included in the first place. Devi was another character I wanted to know more about, and Chit, but they were sidelined after a promising few chapters.
It would also have worked better for me if Ea had been a little more interesting herself. Mostly she’s indignant or guilty and, I GET IT, as that’s my general state of being, but I don’t think she achieved her potential. Or if she did, she did it off-screen, after the end credits.
There were also bits where the tense jumped around and sometimes it was narrative and other times back into the story. It wasn’t horrendous by any means, but it did break the immersion for me and that's something I was struggling with throughout. Its hard to stay invested in torn dolphin vaginas and erotic clams.
ANYWAY… apart from that, I liked parts of the book and Paull’s descriptions and message were both clearly received. Honestly, I hope for more works by her. I just don’t think I’ll be re-reading this again (I re-read The Bees at least once a year) - the sea is just too horny for me.
June 22, 2023
I read this novel specifically because it was shortlisted for the 2023 Women’s Prize for Literature. A brief glance at the publicity ‘blurb’ did not draw me to it in advance, and alas, despite going in with low expectations, the book managed to fall short of even my pessimistic outlook.
My underlying negative criticism is threefold.
1. The parallel themes reflected in the strands of the story didn’t manage to integrate. The ‘character’ “Google” had no place in this story, despite being a fish, and it would have been better to have written a solitary storyline around the Google character. The other themes in the book are so telegraphed (depletion of the coral reefs; overfishing; bloodthirsty harpooning) but at least they form a coherent environmental protest narrative. The true story of military dolphins is an interesting one and maybe Laline Paul can write an extended novel with dogs, and rats (known to have been trained to do man’s bloody warmongering).
2. The degree of violence. While Laline Paull is at pains to point out that she has conducted lots of research, the centrality of male (fish) violence towards female (fish) came as a surprise to me given the other ambitions in the storylines. Take this out of the ocean, and this is a book about rape.Lots of rape. The pretty pictures of dolphins on the cover of the book, and the thirty second book summary: a story of dolphins and freedom, has the effect of drawing in a readership (and younger readers) that in my opinion would be challenging given how unexpected this is from the book blurb. For the first time since I have written reviews of books on Goodreads I think a “trigger” alert is relevant here.
3. The narrative story becomes so (predictably) awful as the end nears (“Finding Nemo” for adults is to do the children’s story a disservice.) Even if you are a reader who likes a conclusive wrap up, and unexpected twists, this book takes the reader on a journey of coincidence layered upon unlikely friendships, and predominantly happy happy conclusions. I didn’t buy into any of the relationships between the sea creatures described.
Notwithstanding the above, the single most irritating description in the book (and there are many contenders for that award) was the author’s frequent referencing of the sea creatures as “people”.
Do I have any redeeming elements to the book? Group behaviour by several fish types described makes me more respectful, and understanding, of the fish in my small pond at home(!)
I did like the character of the Remora fish, and while this would be best developed in a cartoon format, the fickle and stroppy nature of this particular fish amused me.
I note that Laline Paull previously wrote about bees, and on the basis of what I read in Pod, I think it extremely unlikely that I will seek out either her back catalogue, or her future novels.
My underlying negative criticism is threefold.
1. The parallel themes reflected in the strands of the story didn’t manage to integrate. The ‘character’ “Google” had no place in this story, despite being a fish, and it would have been better to have written a solitary storyline around the Google character. The other themes in the book are so telegraphed (depletion of the coral reefs; overfishing; bloodthirsty harpooning) but at least they form a coherent environmental protest narrative. The true story of military dolphins is an interesting one and maybe Laline Paul can write an extended novel with dogs, and rats (known to have been trained to do man’s bloody warmongering).
2. The degree of violence. While Laline Paull is at pains to point out that she has conducted lots of research, the centrality of male (fish) violence towards female (fish) came as a surprise to me given the other ambitions in the storylines. Take this out of the ocean, and this is a book about rape.Lots of rape. The pretty pictures of dolphins on the cover of the book, and the thirty second book summary: a story of dolphins and freedom, has the effect of drawing in a readership (and younger readers) that in my opinion would be challenging given how unexpected this is from the book blurb. For the first time since I have written reviews of books on Goodreads I think a “trigger” alert is relevant here.
3. The narrative story becomes so (predictably) awful as the end nears (“Finding Nemo” for adults is to do the children’s story a disservice.) Even if you are a reader who likes a conclusive wrap up, and unexpected twists, this book takes the reader on a journey of coincidence layered upon unlikely friendships, and predominantly happy happy conclusions. I didn’t buy into any of the relationships between the sea creatures described.
Notwithstanding the above, the single most irritating description in the book (and there are many contenders for that award) was the author’s frequent referencing of the sea creatures as “people”.
Do I have any redeeming elements to the book? Group behaviour by several fish types described makes me more respectful, and understanding, of the fish in my small pond at home(!)
I did like the character of the Remora fish, and while this would be best developed in a cartoon format, the fickle and stroppy nature of this particular fish amused me.
I note that Laline Paull previously wrote about bees, and on the basis of what I read in Pod, I think it extremely unlikely that I will seek out either her back catalogue, or her future novels.
August 18, 2022
Thank you Laline Paull for writing this book! My heart is a little broken after reading but I feel like this book was made for me. The book is lyrical and imaginative. I enjoyed how it put you in the mind of so many different sea creatures.
As well an an over-arching storyline of love, family and being a dolphin with a difference, Pod covers topics of human-induced degradation of the ocean ecosystem. Many of these I studied for my degree so was particularly poignant for me to imagine those processes through the eyes of the ocean inhabitants. The ocean is such a beautiful, intricately connected web and we are really messing things up! In this book, as well as a dolphin, I have been a clam, a remora and a sea anemome, to name a few.
I loved how the author had done so much research into the animals and topics discussed. I learned how dolphins sleep (very interesting, go Google it). Speaking of which, the word "Google" will always upset me now after this book, so thanks for that! (You'd better read to find out why).
I am already someone who literally *cannot*hurt*a*fly* and I'm finding it quite hard to stop imagining the world from any and every other creature around me now. I want to read The Bees next but maybe need a little break first so I don't start actually trying to communicate with animals....
This book was beautiful in parts and completely traumatising in parts. I also particularly enjoyed the note from the author afterwards, which was bright and hopeful given such heavy topics tackled in the book - I really needed that.
SO what I expected to be a light Summer read by the pool, ended up with me in floods of tears, imagining the secret goings-on of the ants around me (and crying when I accidentally stepped on one). It's safe to say this book affected me and I am a massive, massive fan of Laline Paull.
As well an an over-arching storyline of love, family and being a dolphin with a difference, Pod covers topics of human-induced degradation of the ocean ecosystem. Many of these I studied for my degree so was particularly poignant for me to imagine those processes through the eyes of the ocean inhabitants. The ocean is such a beautiful, intricately connected web and we are really messing things up! In this book, as well as a dolphin, I have been a clam, a remora and a sea anemome, to name a few.
I loved how the author had done so much research into the animals and topics discussed. I learned how dolphins sleep (very interesting, go Google it). Speaking of which, the word "Google" will always upset me now after this book, so thanks for that! (You'd better read to find out why).
I am already someone who literally *cannot*hurt*a*fly* and I'm finding it quite hard to stop imagining the world from any and every other creature around me now. I want to read The Bees next but maybe need a little break first so I don't start actually trying to communicate with animals....
This book was beautiful in parts and completely traumatising in parts. I also particularly enjoyed the note from the author afterwards, which was bright and hopeful given such heavy topics tackled in the book - I really needed that.
SO what I expected to be a light Summer read by the pool, ended up with me in floods of tears, imagining the secret goings-on of the ants around me (and crying when I accidentally stepped on one). It's safe to say this book affected me and I am a massive, massive fan of Laline Paull.
April 18, 2023
Women's Prize Longlist / Book #13
Read
April 9, 2024“Tal como já tinha acontecido com The Bees, gostei muito da maneira como a autora introduziu elementos e informações sobre a espécie de modo que fizessem sentido para o enredo. Por exemplo: os golfinhos são animais hipersexuais, o que faz com que a reprodução seja uma parte muito importante da dinâmica entre espécimes. Ea não tem grande interesse nisso, o que também contribui para que seja posta de parte no grupo. Ao mesmo tempo, caracterizou os diferentes tipos de golfinhos, fazendo com que as suas idiossincrasia funcionassem como motivo de discordia.”
Review completa em: https://ritadanova.blogs.sapo.pt/pod-....
Review completa em: https://ritadanova.blogs.sapo.pt/pod-....
May 8, 2023
I jumped at the chance to read Pod, after having bought The Bees and been bowled over by the Mayan inspired beehive world the author created. In that respect, I thought I was prepared for what Pod might offer.
Pod is a work of inspired genius, set in the ocean, from within pods of dolphins, we see the ocean as the world, peopled by different species that as their environment changes, change their habits and behaviours towards others species.
Sometimes those behaviours mimic dysfunctional aspects of human societal behaviour, such as those brought about by a system of domination, the use of violence and subjugation to keep the female species in line, making examples of the weak and young, banishing the old. At the same time, their signals become confused by the changing conditions of the ocean, the noise from large ships, pollution, mutations, a general warming and the presence of a large contaminated patch full of micro-plastics.
The story follows the lives of a young female spinner dolphin Ea, of the Longi tribe, another named Google who has been bred in captivity by a human handler, now alone and lost in the ocean he knows nothing of, a pod of bottle-nose dolphins, of the Tursiops tribe lead by dominant males who have harems. There are also a couple of fish species, including a commensal Remora that stick to the dolphins and can infiltrate their thoughts.
The Longi have been forced out of their homewater by an invasion of the cruel barbaric Tursiops tribe.
It's an ambitious concept and at times difficult to read, due to the treatment inflicted and the dire presence of man, acting in a way that yields little respect for the environment these creatures live and spawn within. Ultimately, it explores aspects of belonging to a species, how they control from inside and treat outsiders and the rebel within.
It's a little sad to see a species that we deem friendly, take on characteristics that echo some of the worst parts of our own. It makes me think of that propensity for humans to describe bad behaviour as being like an animal, only here the animal's bad behaviour is like human.
It is appropriate to mourn the losses, who really knows what it must be like to be a marine animal living in an environment that has been so compromised by a species that lives on land, that continually exploits, pollutes and disregards the fragile biosphere within which they dwell.
As a work of fiction, this was far outside what I normally read and as such it is hard to describe in those terms. The dolphin characters were interesting as they tried to understand their own inner signals and navigate their increasingly confused environment and community, but the monotony of the ocean as a substitute for creating a sense of place and the repetition of their actions, slowed the pace for me midway and made it harder to get back into it.
Pod is a work of inspired genius, set in the ocean, from within pods of dolphins, we see the ocean as the world, peopled by different species that as their environment changes, change their habits and behaviours towards others species.
Sometimes those behaviours mimic dysfunctional aspects of human societal behaviour, such as those brought about by a system of domination, the use of violence and subjugation to keep the female species in line, making examples of the weak and young, banishing the old. At the same time, their signals become confused by the changing conditions of the ocean, the noise from large ships, pollution, mutations, a general warming and the presence of a large contaminated patch full of micro-plastics.
The story follows the lives of a young female spinner dolphin Ea, of the Longi tribe, another named Google who has been bred in captivity by a human handler, now alone and lost in the ocean he knows nothing of, a pod of bottle-nose dolphins, of the Tursiops tribe lead by dominant males who have harems. There are also a couple of fish species, including a commensal Remora that stick to the dolphins and can infiltrate their thoughts.
To spin like everyone else was the key to fitting in, and if she could only hear the music of the ocean like everyone else, she too would be able to tune in and do it.
The Longi have been forced out of their homewater by an invasion of the cruel barbaric Tursiops tribe.
It's an ambitious concept and at times difficult to read, due to the treatment inflicted and the dire presence of man, acting in a way that yields little respect for the environment these creatures live and spawn within. Ultimately, it explores aspects of belonging to a species, how they control from inside and treat outsiders and the rebel within.
It's a little sad to see a species that we deem friendly, take on characteristics that echo some of the worst parts of our own. It makes me think of that propensity for humans to describe bad behaviour as being like an animal, only here the animal's bad behaviour is like human.
Their homewater was no more, powerful devils were ripping the ocean apart and their screaming was killing pods of pilots, of humpbacks, of dolphins.
It is appropriate to mourn the losses, who really knows what it must be like to be a marine animal living in an environment that has been so compromised by a species that lives on land, that continually exploits, pollutes and disregards the fragile biosphere within which they dwell.
As a work of fiction, this was far outside what I normally read and as such it is hard to describe in those terms. The dolphin characters were interesting as they tried to understand their own inner signals and navigate their increasingly confused environment and community, but the monotony of the ocean as a substitute for creating a sense of place and the repetition of their actions, slowed the pace for me midway and made it harder to get back into it.
May 23, 2023
This was one anthropomorphising hell. Hated every minute of this story from page 3. I was promised good eco-fiction and the plight of seas and creatures within it, instead it was told through the stories of horny cetaceans, dolphin gang-bangs and sperm-teeming waves. WTF. What’s upsetting is that the writing skill is there but the story is very much not. It’s beyond me how this made into Women’s Prize for Fiction shortlist. Once again I feel the book is getting accolades because it’s mentioning important topics not because it’s actually a good read. Persevered and finished it but blimey this book didn’t agree with me, to put it mildly.
May 17, 2023
I was drawn to this book because of how different the story was. Narrated by a dolphin called Ea, the book went into detail about what the life of the dolphin is like - both within and without its pod. Author, Laline Paull really utilises this unique perspective to humanise the struggle that marine life is having against the destructiveness of humanity, giving nature a voice in a way that I have not experienced before.
I learnt a fair bit whilst I was reading the book too - about lots of different fish, dolphins, the moon, the ocean, etc. The author does mention that there was some poetic license used, but I still felt like the story had been really well researched. In my copy, the author lists some of the materials she used to write the book, and the writing definitely inspired me to watch some of the documentaries she mentioned to learn more.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend. It showed me the impact we are having on our oceans in a way that I hadn't experienced before.
I learnt a fair bit whilst I was reading the book too - about lots of different fish, dolphins, the moon, the ocean, etc. The author does mention that there was some poetic license used, but I still felt like the story had been really well researched. In my copy, the author lists some of the materials she used to write the book, and the writing definitely inspired me to watch some of the documentaries she mentioned to learn more.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend. It showed me the impact we are having on our oceans in a way that I hadn't experienced before.
April 26, 2023
I’ve never read a more brutal, haunting or compelling telling of the ecocide we are committing.
It walks a brilliant line between humanising the creatures of the oceans without anthropomorphising or infantilising them.
It walks a brilliant line between humanising the creatures of the oceans without anthropomorphising or infantilising them.
April 8, 2023
I really don't understand all the hate for this book, I had a good time reading this.
Absolutely 0% plot, 100% underwater vibes
Absolutely 0% plot, 100% underwater vibes
August 23, 2023
Really wanted to like this but couldn't get on board! Weird pacing, a lot of dolphin rape... A real slog to finish!
May 12, 2023
"Each pod has pride and virtue, each feels above the other. They do not know they share one fatal flaw: they think they know this ocean"
Ea, a dolphin from the Longi tribe (i.e. a spinner dolphin) feels like an outsider. Unlike the other dolphins in her pod, she suffers from a type of deafness and is unable to perform the spinning ritual like the others. When tragedy strikes her family, Ea blames herself and decides to leave the pod without knowing that dangers are lurking everywhere in the ocean. Can Ea survive without the protection of her pod, especially when she encounters a group of arrogant dolphins from the Tursiops tribe (i.e. bottlenose dolphins)? While Ea is the central character of the story, Laline Paull introduced us to the vast ocean world from the perspectives of, among others, the Rorqual (a baleen whale), the Remora (who attaches to dolphins), the Humphead Wrasse (who is able to change its gender), the Fugu (also known as a pufferfish which can be lethally poisonous), Devi (the First Wife of Lord Ku, the leader of the Tursiops tribe), and Google (a military marine dolphin).
This is a rather unique climate fiction where Laline Paull approached the issues of pollution and environmental threats through the perspectives of marine animals (though I understand that Paull's debut, The Bees, revolved around the central character of a sanitation bee living in a hive). The exploration of marine and cetacean life shows the efforts that Paull has put into researching this subject. The marine ecosystem, and the habitats of each animal, elevated the distinctiveness of this novel as it is eye-opening to learn all this new information. Through the marine life, Paull also inculcated issues such as toxic masculinity, classism, racism, discrimination, corruption, abuse of power, and violence being targeted on females. The use of terms such as "demons", "devils" and "evil stuff" as metaphors for the threats that the marine animals are facing, coupled with Paull's beautiful prose showcased the literary value of this book: "Their homewater was no more, powerful devils were ripping the ocean apart and their screaming was killing pods of pilots, of humpbacks, of dolphins. There were nets of death where once was open water, there were great rents in the seabed. Death was everywhere, people were fleeing, the ocean was either full of refugees or terrifyingly empty"; "Deep within a sprawling strangle of moults was an old female turtle. Her neck was almost severed by a transparent loop that twisted tighter as she struggled, so that Ea saw the pale raw flesh where the moult cut in. The turtle was near her end but feebly continued trying to free herself. Lower down were more creatures - a drowned flock of birds, and rotting fish and a huge shapeless piece of flesh that might once have been a whale calf of some kind". These vivid descriptions effectively paint the cruel acts that humans have committed which resulted in the destruction of marine life. While I have yet to read The Bee and The Ice, with Pod, I can say that Laline Paull has fortified her status as a "cli-fi" author. Pod is definitely an interesting and unique addition to the shortlist for the 2023 Women's Prize for Fiction. This is a strong 4/5 star read to me and I am definitely picking up Paull's backlists soon!
Ea, a dolphin from the Longi tribe (i.e. a spinner dolphin) feels like an outsider. Unlike the other dolphins in her pod, she suffers from a type of deafness and is unable to perform the spinning ritual like the others. When tragedy strikes her family, Ea blames herself and decides to leave the pod without knowing that dangers are lurking everywhere in the ocean. Can Ea survive without the protection of her pod, especially when she encounters a group of arrogant dolphins from the Tursiops tribe (i.e. bottlenose dolphins)? While Ea is the central character of the story, Laline Paull introduced us to the vast ocean world from the perspectives of, among others, the Rorqual (a baleen whale), the Remora (who attaches to dolphins), the Humphead Wrasse (who is able to change its gender), the Fugu (also known as a pufferfish which can be lethally poisonous), Devi (the First Wife of Lord Ku, the leader of the Tursiops tribe), and Google (a military marine dolphin).
This is a rather unique climate fiction where Laline Paull approached the issues of pollution and environmental threats through the perspectives of marine animals (though I understand that Paull's debut, The Bees, revolved around the central character of a sanitation bee living in a hive). The exploration of marine and cetacean life shows the efforts that Paull has put into researching this subject. The marine ecosystem, and the habitats of each animal, elevated the distinctiveness of this novel as it is eye-opening to learn all this new information. Through the marine life, Paull also inculcated issues such as toxic masculinity, classism, racism, discrimination, corruption, abuse of power, and violence being targeted on females. The use of terms such as "demons", "devils" and "evil stuff" as metaphors for the threats that the marine animals are facing, coupled with Paull's beautiful prose showcased the literary value of this book: "Their homewater was no more, powerful devils were ripping the ocean apart and their screaming was killing pods of pilots, of humpbacks, of dolphins. There were nets of death where once was open water, there were great rents in the seabed. Death was everywhere, people were fleeing, the ocean was either full of refugees or terrifyingly empty"; "Deep within a sprawling strangle of moults was an old female turtle. Her neck was almost severed by a transparent loop that twisted tighter as she struggled, so that Ea saw the pale raw flesh where the moult cut in. The turtle was near her end but feebly continued trying to free herself. Lower down were more creatures - a drowned flock of birds, and rotting fish and a huge shapeless piece of flesh that might once have been a whale calf of some kind". These vivid descriptions effectively paint the cruel acts that humans have committed which resulted in the destruction of marine life. While I have yet to read The Bee and The Ice, with Pod, I can say that Laline Paull has fortified her status as a "cli-fi" author. Pod is definitely an interesting and unique addition to the shortlist for the 2023 Women's Prize for Fiction. This is a strong 4/5 star read to me and I am definitely picking up Paull's backlists soon!
Read
April 1, 2022This was a long read for me despite it being a relatively short book. We follow different ocean creatures such as dolphins, whales, and crustaceans as they live their lives in the depths of the oceans. I’ve never read a book like this one before, but I just knew I wanted to give it a go and I’m glad I did. This book is heavy on oceanology and marine life so if you aren’t really interested in any of that they you might want to give this one a miss, but for those that are curious and wish to know more, or would like to see what an ocean mammal might get up to give it a try.
“She knew she was valued for being a good hunter, but what Ea craved was to be normal.”
Honestly, I’ve never resonated with a dolphin more than when I read this line. I enjoyed reading little Ea’s chapters in this book as she tried to figure out just exactly who she was and where she belonged in the vast ocean. The Rorqual was another character whose chapters I loved to read, and he had some amazing quotes about the ocean;
“It was rotting and he guessed its mother had stayed beside her little one, until she could no longer bear it. Or the sharks came. And yet … there were also many sharks caught in the veil of death.”
I can’t imagine the amount of research the author had to do to get all of the incredible details in this book right. I particularly liked that the author made sure to include the scenes that depicted rape as marine mammals, especially dolphins, are known to do this so much.
“Each pod has pride and virtue, each feels above the other. They do not know they share one fatal flaw: they think they know this ocean.”
Thank you to Little Brown for sending me a proof in exchange for my review.
“She knew she was valued for being a good hunter, but what Ea craved was to be normal.”
Honestly, I’ve never resonated with a dolphin more than when I read this line. I enjoyed reading little Ea’s chapters in this book as she tried to figure out just exactly who she was and where she belonged in the vast ocean. The Rorqual was another character whose chapters I loved to read, and he had some amazing quotes about the ocean;
“It was rotting and he guessed its mother had stayed beside her little one, until she could no longer bear it. Or the sharks came. And yet … there were also many sharks caught in the veil of death.”
I can’t imagine the amount of research the author had to do to get all of the incredible details in this book right. I particularly liked that the author made sure to include the scenes that depicted rape as marine mammals, especially dolphins, are known to do this so much.
“Each pod has pride and virtue, each feels above the other. They do not know they share one fatal flaw: they think they know this ocean.”
Thank you to Little Brown for sending me a proof in exchange for my review.
May 8, 2023
“‘Remember when the water teemed with our fecund spunk?’ said the fish wistfully.” - Pod, Laline Paull, 2023
Want to read
April 26, 2023Leena Norms's review of this on youtube made me so intrigued about this book lmao
February 17, 2023
The author of THE BEES returns to her dark imaginings, this time giving human characteristics to sea creatures. POD is “...an immersive and transformative new novel of an ocean world—its extraordinary creatures, mysteries, and mythologies—that is increasingly haunted by the cruelty and ignorance of the human race. In her terrifying, propulsive novel, Laline Paull explores the true meaning of family, belonging, and sacrifice—the harmony and tragedy of the pod—within an ocean that is no longer the sanctuary it once was and which reflects a world all too recognizable to our own.” (GoodReads)
There’s much to unpack from this exploration of human nature told via dolphins, a whale, and a Great Napolean Wrasse. Let me start here: This is no “Flipper.” The story gets dark, with violence, abuse, and rape. I moved slowly through the book but found it compelling, especially the parts about Google, a military-trained bottlenose lost and injured after a mission went terribly wrong. Ironically, I often Googled during my reading to look at pictures of the animals described.
While not for everyone, I found POD bizarre in the best possible way and compulsively readable. Paull’s impressive research delivered another haunting and disturbing story.
QOTD: What’s your favorite sea creature?
If you’d like my paperback ARC of POD, comment below. (Hat tip to @reliablebookgirl_rbg for the idea!). If there is more than one, I’ll do a “random drawing.”
Thank you, Pegasus Books and Laline Paull, for the Advanced Reading Copy of POD. US Pub Date: 7 Feb 23 (Available now)
There’s much to unpack from this exploration of human nature told via dolphins, a whale, and a Great Napolean Wrasse. Let me start here: This is no “Flipper.” The story gets dark, with violence, abuse, and rape. I moved slowly through the book but found it compelling, especially the parts about Google, a military-trained bottlenose lost and injured after a mission went terribly wrong. Ironically, I often Googled during my reading to look at pictures of the animals described.
While not for everyone, I found POD bizarre in the best possible way and compulsively readable. Paull’s impressive research delivered another haunting and disturbing story.
QOTD: What’s your favorite sea creature?
If you’d like my paperback ARC of POD, comment below. (Hat tip to @reliablebookgirl_rbg for the idea!). If there is more than one, I’ll do a “random drawing.”
Thank you, Pegasus Books and Laline Paull, for the Advanced Reading Copy of POD. US Pub Date: 7 Feb 23 (Available now)
March 19, 2023
This is a book that could only have been written at this particular time in history. It's about cataclysm, the end of worlds, unbearable change, and something new and hopeful arising out of that. I was curious to see if the author could pull off the talking animals, but once I started reading, I understood that the animals talking (that is, having internal lives and making moral choices and all that) was precisely the point. A similar story could be told about warring human groups, but it wouldn't be the story Laline Paull is trying to tell, which is about the dignity of the world's creatures, the horrible things humans have wreaked upon them, and - beautifully and crucially - the possibilities that open up when we can see beyond our own species.
I don't think I could love this book any more than I do - the writing is gorgeous, the characters are compelling (especially the Rorqual and the Wrasse). It allowed me to experience (the author's imagination of) a dolphin's sensory experience of the ocean. It made me feel lots of things. The level of imagination it took to create this is astonishing. It's a beautiful novel.
I don't think I could love this book any more than I do - the writing is gorgeous, the characters are compelling (especially the Rorqual and the Wrasse). It allowed me to experience (the author's imagination of) a dolphin's sensory experience of the ocean. It made me feel lots of things. The level of imagination it took to create this is astonishing. It's a beautiful novel.
The distant whale boomed again like faraway thunder. Then as his great billows of sound were still travelling across the ocean, he wailed across the top of them in a harsh and soaring lament that filled Ea with sadness and rage. It faded away, and the silence that followed had a different quality. It was over. The whale had passed on, leaving Ea with the ache of relief that someone else understood loneliness and pain.
August 28, 2024
This was my book club read for August '24. I went into this book with very little knowledge of the plot and few expectations, except knowing that books on the Women's Prize for Fiction shortlist tend to be enjoyable.
I was pleasantly surprised by "Pod." Paull dives deep into the underwater world of dolphins and other sea creatures, blending scientific realism with a gripping narrative that explores themes of community, survival, and environmental destruction. The characters—even the dolphins—are complex and memorable, and the story raises important questions about the impact of human behaviour on marine life. Once I let go of the disbelief that the characters were not human, I found myself fully immersed in their personal journeys and felt a deep sense of sadness for them.
Overall, it was a unique and thought-provoking read that left me with a new appreciation for the world beneath the waves. It made for a great book club pick, sparking interesting discussions, even though the majority of my fellow book clubbers didn't enjoy the book as much! 😅
I was pleasantly surprised by "Pod." Paull dives deep into the underwater world of dolphins and other sea creatures, blending scientific realism with a gripping narrative that explores themes of community, survival, and environmental destruction. The characters—even the dolphins—are complex and memorable, and the story raises important questions about the impact of human behaviour on marine life. Once I let go of the disbelief that the characters were not human, I found myself fully immersed in their personal journeys and felt a deep sense of sadness for them.
Overall, it was a unique and thought-provoking read that left me with a new appreciation for the world beneath the waves. It made for a great book club pick, sparking interesting discussions, even though the majority of my fellow book clubbers didn't enjoy the book as much! 😅
May 15, 2023
This was so incredibly strange. I will say I wasn't enamoured with it at first. The writing and characters in the first 50 or so pages felt somewhat stilted. But as the story developed it felt as if the writing relaxed into the shape of the plot, and greatly improved. I really struggle to pinpoint my thoughts on this book. It is graphic, brutal, dark and awful, but also strangely beautiful. All I can say is, fish are horny.
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