Welcome to Whalebone Mansion: Creatures That Lurk at a Whale Fall
by Laken Slate; illus. by Bindy James
Preschool, Primary    Charlesbridge    32 pp.
10/25    9781623545789    $17.99
e-book ed.  9781632894496    $9.99

Two small, inquisitive fish explore a whale fall (a sunken whale carcass that forms its own ecosystem) as if it were a haunted house where marine visitors become scary creatures gliding in and out of the whale bones. On seeing green, willowy tentacles, they ask, “Is it smoke from a witch’s cauldron? Is it the reaching arm of a ghost?” and then realize, “It’s the slime of a snake-like hagfish!” A factual callout adds, “The slippery hagfish has no bones. Its skeleton consists entirely of rubbery cartilage. It burrows into its food with rows of hidden, razor-sharp teeth.” The two fish similarly encounter an array of sea creatures such as octopuses, a vampire squid, and Osedax worms. We learn through their observations that, over time, the decaying bones completely disappear. Slate entices readers and listeners with just the right amount of spookiness while presenting facts about whale falls. James’s digital illustrations complement the text, creating a world of creatures with sharp teeth and scary tentacles that’s tempered by a palette of bright colors against deep blue backgrounds. Back matter gives more information about whale falls and the ocean’s midnight zone. An informative introduction to lesser-known facts about whale falls (see also Stewart’s Whale Fall, rev. 1/23, and Brunelle’s Life After Whale, rev. 5/24).

From the November/December 2025 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.