This review could be as big as a blue whale or as small as a krill, because I have so much to say about Fathoms, and it’s almost too much – like any book I loved, it’s impossible to know where to start and my inclination is to simply say ‘just read it’.

The subtitle of Fathoms – ‘The world in the whale’ is both literal and metaphoric. Rebecca Giggs writes of a whale found with an entire greenhouse and its paraphernalia in its stomach –

We struggle to understand the sprawl of our impact, but there it is, within one cavernous stomach: pollution, climate, animal welfare, wildness, commerce, the future, and the past. Inside the whale, the world.

Giggs goes on to reflect how whales are a measure of the condition of our seas; are a significant part of cultural heritage, of folklore, history, and of economies. Just when you think there’s nothing more that can be said about whales, Giggs offers a fresh perspective, a twist. It’s an astounding piece of writing. And no, you don’t have to be a whale-lover to appreciate this book, because it speaks to something larger – a reminder that there is so much about the natural world that we don’t know; the cost of human dominion over animals; climate change; and the role of whales in philosophy, literature, industry, and technology.

It is, perhaps, easy to imagine the enterprise of whaling in an era of drawing rooms, sniffing-salts and hand-lit street lamps, but to conceive of the industry undergirding the birth of the automotive city requires surprising effort (let alone to reflect on whaling being coterminous with the space age).

There is a huge amount of information in this book, sorted into eight chapters, with each chapter fronted by an extensive ‘topic list’. The lists hint at the breadth of this book, from ‘Whales, Do They Travel the Ocean in Veins?’and ‘Soap and Butter and Bombs’ to ‘The Narrowing of Killer-Whale Culture’ and ‘Whalefall’.

From the dark come red-streamer creatures that flutter all over. Colourless crabs; their delicate gluttony. Life pops. It is as though the whale were a pinata cracked open, flinging bright treasures. On the body gather coin-sized mussels, lucinid clams, limpets, and crepitating things that live off sulphate. Over 200 different species can occupy the frame of one whale carcass.

I marked over 110 passages in Fathoms. Truly. And not single sentences, but rafts of text. In the reading moment, it was all so important, so relevant, so beautifully written. Looking back over those passages, my reasons for marking them still apply but I’m left with the problem of summarising and reviewing this wonderful book. It’s impossible, but I can share what I loved most.

Firstly, I was constantly surprised by incredible whale facts, and the insight Giggs applied.

Fractional exposure builds up over multiple seasons, making some whales more polluted than their environment…
Though I had started out seeking answers to how and why whales died, what had begun to click into place was this: my entire definition of pollution demanded revision.

The chapter on ‘charisma’, which Giggs describes as ‘… a species capacity to function as a mascot, to sustain a riveting narrative…’ is confronting (where do I park my snorkelling and diving generated guilt?).

Secondly, the fine writing – Giggs’s descriptions of whales and the sea are sublime. She strikes a balance between laying out the facts and building the narrative, stringing it all together with rich prose.

The whale’s extreme bigness is not just stupendous, but a bit eerie; to think of aliveness, and sensitivity, on such a scale.

Thirdly, the references to things already in my whale knowledge – 52 Blue, whale song, whale fat as a ‘cure’, and the history of whaling in Australia –

Under civic pressure, Australian whaling ceased in 1977, and though Australia was the last English-language nation to persist with commercial whaling, it was also the first country to shift to an official anti-whaling rhetoric.

Giggs goes on to describe Australia’s ground-breaking whale protection legislation. As I read, I was reminded of a childhood event that looms large in my memory – my dad, a geographer (and keen photographer) visited Australia’s last whaling station in Albany. He took photos – huge slabs of blubber, men in rubber boots hosing the blood, body parts so large they made no sense on the human scale of the station – and showed me the pictures on his return. I realised as I read this section of Fathoms, that I was five when I saw those pictures… No wonder the horror of seeing them has stayed with me – how could those slaughtered whales compare to anything I’d seen until that point in my life?

And lastly, the reminder of the intrinsic value of our natural world, and in particular the unknown and silent depths of the ocean –

Silence is the resource we most overlook, though its potential is inwardly replenishing, and its absence is often taxing.

4/5 Superb.

I received my copy of Fathoms from the publisher, Scribe UK, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

One of my favourite pieces of nature/natural history writing to date.

This is such a well-researched and well-presented exploration not only of 'the whale' but of their ongoing relationship with humanity, our history and the progression (and struggles) of the natural world.

I have always had a soft spot and interest in whales but there was so much touched upon and explained in 'Fathoms' that I'd never fully realised. The more nature writing I read, the more terrifying humanity's current trajectory becomes but there's also real hope within these pages.

I absolutely loved it.

Insight, informative and wonderfully written.

As a huge lover of marine life and whales in particular I jumped at the opportunity to get to read Fathoms. I felt that it was very informative and at times very sad.

Fathoms: the world in the whale was a very interesting book filled with interesting facts on whales themselves and a lot about their lifestyle and how they move around. A lot of the book, even though was most about whales branched out to talk about other important things like climate change, the effects humans have on the environment and how important it is to be aware of our footprint.

I loved all the information and the content in the book but I found the writing really difficult to get through. Which in turn made it feel a bit of a chore to read this book. The author chopped and changed and I didn't know where things were going at times.

Overall I'd give it 3.5 stars as it was interesting and the content was beautiful but the writing made it very difficult to figure out what was going on and what points were trying to be made.

Rebecca Giggs' book is a contemplation on the place of whales in our environment and our culture and, paradoxically, our place in the environment of the whales. It's an unusual blend of history, natural history and philosophy, reaching from the shores of a beach in Perth to the depths of the oceans and also to the surface of the sun.

I learned a lot about whales reading this book, but I was not really sure what to make of it overall. I found the philosophical elements a bit unconvincing, and excessively anthropomorphic at times.

This book got archived before I downloaded it, which was few days after the approval. I did not get a chance to read it.
I would amend this review once I get a chance to read the whole book.

Fathoms is award-winning Australian writer Rebecca Giggs’s narrative nonfiction debut and is quite unlike anything I've ever read before. Whilst it may appear to be all about whales and their habitat this book actually encompasses an array of topics from the natural world and the beauty and destructive power wrought by mother nature right through to philosophy and climate change, all of which are written about in expressive and dazzling prose. The sections addressing the topic of extinction of a variety of animals, including ourselves, I found moving as it is clear to see the authors profound love for the natural world and her increasing anxiety with the way humans refuse to curtail their activities or effect changes to protect our planet and all of its precious gifts. All of this makes for a beautiful reading experience, and I feel all of those who appreciate the wonders of our world will thoroughly enjoy it. It is a refreshing and compelling amalgamation of knowledge and memoir and covers a great deal of ground without ever feeling too sprawling to grasp. Many thanks to Scribe for an ARC.

At once an encyclopedic tour de force about all things to do with whales and whaling, and a lyrical exploration of humans and other species on the brink of the next great extinction, "Fathoms: The World in the Whale" is a blessing. An immersive, beautifully written mix of academic exploration, philosophical musings, and research memoir, it is a right book for a right time. Australian author Rebecca Giggs covers every aspect of whales fully (sometimes, it must be said, too exhaustively for this simple soul). A number of times, I gasped at unexpected knowledge revealed or fresh insights gained. "Fathoms" is recommended for anyone with the slightest fascination with nature and our environment.

Fathoms by Rebecca Giggs is about the natural world and the wonder of whales and the marine environment.