The Song of Maress

By John Proynoff

This mystical novel tells the tale of Maress, a young dolphin who, along with her mother and aunt, has fled her home to escape the punishing heat of El Nino. Drifting through the vast waters of Oshania, Maress meets Big Blue, a wise old whale whose gentle counsel encourages Maress to make a place for herself in the Oshanian community. Her mother and aunt, however, have forbidden her from consorting with the locals and from learning their language, for fear of losing her own culture. With Big Blue's help, Maress begins to understand that, without the common bond of language, she and her family will never truly belong in Oshania. So begins her quest to create a home for herself in a new world, discovering friendship and true love along the way. The Song of Maress poses an allegorical solution to the immigrant's challenge between making a new life in a strange land and holding onto important customs from the past.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1419690493
• ISBN13: 9781419690495
• Release Date: June 2008
• Publisher: Booksurge Publishing
• Length: 128 Pages
• Weight: 0.44 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.3" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

A culturally fascination tale!

Reviewed by Dylan James (age12) for Reader Views (1/09) What would it be like to travel from your country and mingle with many different languages and cultures, especially if your parents thought their way of life was better and they had no need to respect other creature's ways of life and languages? Add that you're a young dolphin, and things get harder. Maress learns to treat all creatures as equal and to respect others, even if they live differently. Maress learns other languages, learns other customs, and even introduces some of her customs to live peacefully in a different country. "The Song of Maress" by John Proynoff was an incredible moral story. In fact, this story was the best cultural story I have ever read, without a doubt. If you are traveling to a different country, or wish to understand how to cope with changes, or even just want a good read, then "The Song of Maress" is definitely for you. All ages and both genders will be fascinated for a long time with this book. Parents might want to console their children and answer questions after reading it though, because this book provokes moral questions and has a partially sad ending. Seven to 10-year-olds will be most thrilled with this book, but I am 12 and I still had a good time. This could have been slightly better if it had less intense violence. Not to say that this is a violent book, but there are several dolphin battles in which the main character rams the enemies in their blowhole. If it had been toned down, then it would be great for 5-10-year-olds. That is my only suggestion, though. I rarely rate books 5 stars, but this one deserved it and I hope others think so as well.