The Wee Seal

Jamie has been watching the wee white seal that lives on the beach. At night the wee seal cuddles up to its mother. In the morning she goes out to sea and leaves it alone like a strange white stone on the sand. One day tourists come and crowd the wee seal but Jamie knows just what to do to protect it until its mother comes back…Janis Mackay’s lyrical prose tells the story of the tender relationship between the wild baby seal and the young boy who watches over it, while Gabby Grant’s soft illustrations brilliantly evoke the landscape of the Orkney Islands.

Reviews of The Wee Seal

'This is a story that you can imagine Janis reading. It has a sing song lilt, not quite poetry but not quite prose … Janis is at her best with stories relating to the sea and this is a lovely innocent nature tale.' — Lothian Life 'This book has a beautiful island setting which very much reminded me of the illustrations in the Katie Morag books, so they might appeal to the same children … A nice way to learn about the lives of seals – and the right way to treat nature.' — Anabel Marsh, Anabel's Children's Literature Blog 'An informative and gentle tale.' — Early Years Educator 'This is a lovely story about the tender relationship between a wild baby seal and the young boy who watches over it and the soft illustrations brilliantly conjure up the landscape of Scotland. The illustrations of the seals are stunning, especially the one at the start of mum and baby and when they swim away at the end. A lovely story to share and then to go seal spotting like we did.' — Bookbabblers blog 'This is a very gentle picture book story set in the Scottish islands and can be enjoyed by a wide range of children. Not only is it a story but it's also educational and will serve to teach children about nature and seals in particular.' – Armadillo 'This charming tale is accompanied by appropriate and delicate illustrations in muted colours which greatly add to the text. I very much enjoyed this book." –The School Librarian 'The book begins poetically: "It came in the night / when the world was asleep, / that strange white stone on the beach." Jamie discovers that the "stone" is actually a baby seal, and for days, he greets the pup morning and evening, knowing that the "wee seal's mum" cares for her baby each night. But the pup attracts the wrong kind of attention. An amusing double-page spread shows an aerial view of tourists leaning in too closely over the bemused seal, after which Jamie rushes in with a sign that proclaims, "the seal has a Mum. Leeve alon plees. Jamie." Jamie's diligence gives the seal time to shed its baby fur and grow, following its mother's song into the sea when it has reached proper maturity.' –Kirkus 'This is a beautiful story about a baby seal left on the shore by its mother. A boy in a nearby cottage watches the seal and realises that the mother comes to it each evening to bring food. He keeps an eye on the seal and rushes out to protect it from a bunch of well-meaning tourists. When the seal has grown enough, it swims out to sea with its mother. A touching story about nurture and care.' — Juno