Whale+Talk

Cutter High doesn't have a swimming pool or even a team of competitive swimmers. But that doesn't stop T.J. from putting together a squad of unlikely members, primarily to win a letter jacket for Chris Coughlin, who has a developmental disability, and to help his English teacher. T.J. (The Tao) Jones is tall, athletically gifted, of mixed race, adopted, and, until his senior year, has taken his considerable athletic talents out of any Cutter team sport. Crutcher adds to this central conflict a number of side plots: T.J.'s father is a man atoning for a past tragedy, T.J.'s therapist is also treating the biracial and severely abused daughter of Cutter's biggest athletic booster, and the misfit team members T.J. has assembled have their own personal problems. This remarkable novel is vintage Crutcher: heart-pounding athletic competitions, raw emotion, an insufferable high school atmosphere that allows bullying and reveres athletes, and a larger-than-life teen hero who champions the underdog while skewering both racists and abusers with his rapier-sharp wit. Highly Recommended. Suzanne Manczuk, Associate Reviews Editor

Why was Mike Barbour giving Chris Caughlin a hard time about the letter jacket? Chris was wearing his dead brother's jacket and Mike says he didn't earn it.

What does The Tao (TJ) convice Chris to do? He recruits Chris to be on the first swimteam and wear a Speedo jacket.

Why is Rich Marshall always hanging around school? He is a wealthy logger's son with lots of time on his hands who wants to relive his youth and "help out" in the physical education debartment. He really bullys others and trys to make life miserable for many.

Why is he a particular enemy to The Tao? The Tao, even though good enough, refuses to play on the football team. He also gets into a fight about killing a baby deer which is illegal.

What did The Tao do to shame Rich for shooting the deer and beating him up? He wore the bloody shirt to school every day for a week and told everyone what Rich did.

Why did Oliver Van Zandt (Icko) become the assistant coach a driver for the team? He lives at the fitness center to support his son through college.

What traumatic event plagues TJ's father till this day? He accidentally ran over a baby with his truck, July 27th, 1968.

Why does the swim team have to practice at a fitness center? There is no other pool and even though too small, the kids make it work with land drills. Half the team is in the water and half have to be out.

How does Heidi come to live with The Tao's family? She is abused by Rich Marshall because she is mixed race. He doesn't accept her because she is the baby of his current wife Alicia and a former boyfriend, a black man named Willis Stack.

Who places her with the family? Georgia Brown, The Tao's therapist since Heidi was working with TJ and feels comfortable with him. TJ was also abused as a child before he came to live with his parents.

What type of music does Chris listen to while he swims? He likes Christmas music.

Why is Chris mentally challenged? He was abused as a baby and his head was wrapped in Saran-wrap. Oxygen was kept from his brain.

Why do the officials question Andy Motts' strokes? He has a prosthesis and only swims with one leg.

What happened after the first meet? The bus ran off the road and the team was stuck on the side of the road. The guys really started to get to know eachother then by opening up.

How were the bys able to get a letter jacket on the team? Mr. Simmet worked out that each kid must improve his time each and every meet.

Why did the team start to study 45 minutes prior to practice and on the bus? The boys have to meet eligibilty requirements of a 2.0.

Why is whale talk so significant? Whales can communicate hundreds or even thousands of miles, so every one of them knows exactly what the other is about.

How do the boys use Tay-Roy's body to their advantage? They send pictures of Tay-Roy's built bod to get girls on the internet.

What happens when Dan uses sophisticated words in Icko's presence? He makes him do push ups.

Why didn't TJ beat up Mike Barbour after Mike hurt his girlfriend? TJ was stopped by the cops which prevented him from going after Mike.

How did Mott end up losing his leg? His mother's boyfriend tied him to a pole for 34 hours and the knot cut off his circulation. He developed gangrine and it had to be amputed.

Why did TJ finish dead last at the State championships? He wanted to make sure that the Athletic Asssociation at Cutter wouldn't get the points.

Did the boys finally get their letters? All the boys did receive their letter jackets except for TJ since he didn't beat his best time at the championships. However, Chris gave him Brian's jacket.

Why was TJ's dad shot and killed? Rich Marshall was trying to shoot Heidi after he lost at the Hoopster tournament and his father saved her.

Who did TJ find when he visited the grave of the baby? He ended up meeting his half brother.

What was the last thing his father said to TJ? "Not one minute for revenge."