The Music of Dolphins - (Apple Classics) by Karen Hesse (Paperback)

About the Book

A girl raised by dolphins must choose between two worlds in this critically acclaimed novel about what it means to be a human being.

Book Synopsis

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 island off Cuba, she is an adolescent and seems hardly human to her rescuers. Mila is taken to a child study center in Boston. Eager to please, she makes rapid progress in language and social skills. With her recorder, Mila finds she can even make music like the dolphin songs she yearningly remembers. But the more Mila discovers about what it means to be human--the locked doors, the rules, the betrayals--the more she longs for her watery home and gentle dolphin family. In an emotionally wracking conclusion, she returns to the world where her ears never want for song. Where, although she cannot stand on her tail or jump the waves, she is part of the music of dolphins.

From the Back Cover

FROM WILD CHILD TO....?

Mila creates headlines around the world when she is rescued from an unpopulated island off the coast of Florida. Now a teenager, she has been raised by dolphins from the age of four.

Researchers teach Mila language and music. She learns, too, about rules and expectations, about locked doors and broken promises, disappointment and betrayal.

The more Mila finds out what it means to be human, the more deeply she longs for her ocean home. . . .

Review Quotes

"Mila's rich inner voice makes her a lovely, lyrical character." - Voice of Youth Advocates

About the Author

Karen Hesse is the award-winning and critically acclaimed author of many books for children. Her titles include Witness, The Cats in Krasinski Square, and the Newbery Medal winner Out of the Dust, among many others. She lives in Vermont with her husband and two teenaged daughters.