The Music of Dolphins

by Karen Hesse

Book Overview

They call her Mila, from the Spanish word for "miracle." Lost after a plane crash when she was small, Mila has been cared for ever since by dolphins. When she is eventually spotted on an unpopulated... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0590897977
• ISBN13: 9780590897976
• Release Date: January 1996
• Publisher: Hyperion Books for Children
• Length: 181 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.8" x 8.5"
• Age Range: 9 to 12 years
• Grade Range: Grades 4 to 7

Customer Reviews

Sociological Literature for Young People

I am writing this as a reply to the review entitled "OMG THIS BOOK WAS HORRIBLE." This novel is not about it being a "true" story, which it isn't, but about the development of language and social communication and interaction. An example case relative to Mila's predicament would be the case of Isabelle, who was discovered when she was 6 years old in a dark room, where her family kept her secluded from the world. She hadn't properly developed speech, nor did she have social experience. The point is that as the book progresses, the author writes from Mila's perspective as she develops her language skills.

Kendall's reveiw

Have you ever wondered what it's like to be a dolphin? In the book "Music of Dolphins" Mila, a 13 year old girl is trapped in the human world after spending the last thirteen years of her life living with dolphins. In the human world, scientists study her and try to force her to teach them dolphin language. Mila loves music and the scientists teach her to play the recorder, but there is a different kind of music she yearns for. She misses the dolphins and their music, but will she be able to return? Karen Hesse has written an enchanting book on what it means to be human. I really loved this book because it taught me what family is really all about!

Unforgettable

You always read books about dolphins. Books that have no effect on you. Books you think back on and say, "Oh yeah, that was an okay story." Lots of authors will spin a simple tale around the subject of dolphins because it's a popular topic that many people like. When I bought The Music of Dolphins at a book fair, I thought I was getting just that: a simple story about a girl raised by dolphins. Nothing new, nothing exciting, nothing captivating. Boy was I ever wrong.The Music of Dolphins features a teenage girl found off Cuba, in the midst of her only real family, a group of dolphins. Mila, as she is dubbed, speaks no language but the clicks and cries of her cousins, as she calls the animals. This incredible story follows her growth as a human, in her own simple writing, as she learns what she truly is, and what she truly wants to be. As she progresses she discovers more and more about what this life she's been forced into means, and the pain and sadness that come with it. You will truly feel Mila's emotions, and will cry when you realize the decision she makes at the end. Maybe it's the right one, and maybe it's not, but this profound story will make you think about who you are, through the eyes of a girl who is different in ways you can only imagine.

An unusual, fascinating story

A young girl is discovered swimming in the waters between Florida and Cuba, and when researchers bring her in, they learn that she has been living with dolphins, basically raised by them and taught to communicate and survive in their world. In the laboratory, where they attempt to teach her human speech and behavior, this girl they've named Mila makes slow progress, and eventually she must choose between living in their world and living in the one she has known for most of her life. This unusual, fascinating story is made even more so by the fact that it is told by Mila, and like Flowers for Algernon, we see her speech and behavior slowly improve as the story is told, and then decline as she realizes that she would rather live among the dolphins than with humans. An intriguing book that will appeal to anyone interested in psychology, especially the psychology of language acquisition and the stories of historical figures such as the Wild Boy of Averon and Genie.

The Music of Dolphins

In the poignant story The Music of Dolphins a young girl named Mila survives a plane crash and lives with dolphins for about nine years. Then the coast guard finds her and takes her to a facility for study. Although she enjoys experiencing life as a human, she cannot deny her longing to return to the sea and her dolphin family. Eventually, she must return. In this book, Hesse uses the first person point of view as a tool to show Mila's degree of human socialization. At the beginning of the book, the sentences and chapters are short; there are no paragraphs. These characteristics illustrate Mila's limited ability to vocalize because she has not acquired the language skills necessary to organize her dolphin-like thoughts. As she learns English, Mila uses elementary, disjointed speech. In addition to using simplistic words to convey this message, Hesse uses font size to further illustrate her point. The large font size in the first part of the book symbolizes Mila's degree of socialization. Also in the first few chapters, Mila uses observations with few expressions of feelings. For example, she says, "I like good" (8); "I like Sandy happy" (9); "I like to see the picture of dolphin" (11). These examples also illustrate her rudimentary language skills. As the book continues, the sentences get longer, and paragraphs begin to form. By Chapter 23, Mila speaks in paragraphs. This shows how much Mila has learned. Also it denotes that she has reached a level that is more socially acceptable. Hesse now decreases the font size to what one would consider average. She also employs more complex expressions of feelings and ideas to indicate Mila's increased knowledge and language. For example, she says, "I love to use my hands. To play games, to make music . . . I like every little thing I am learning with my fingers and my toes" (83). The turning point of the story is Chapter 29. Until this point, Mila has been content to live in a house with Doctor Beck and the others and learn human things like, playing games, sleeping in a bed, and wearing clothes. In this chapter, Mila decides she no longer wants to be human. She would rather return to the sea and the dolphins. At first, she just tries to be good and follow the rules, hoping that one day they'll let her leave. In Chapter 36, Mila has a talk with Justin in which he tells her that no matter how good she is Dr. Beck will not release her. She realizes then that she doesn't have to let Dr. Beck control her and that she can stand up for herself. After this point, Mila begins her journey back to her former life. Hesse reverses the changes made in font size, sentence length, paragraph length, and word complexity. This reversal symbolizes Mila's reversal to dolphin life. Hesse uses font size and other structural methods effectively. She has transformed these overlooked aspects of writing into tools that convey her intend