This is a rich, strange book...convincing in its portrayal of the mind-set of a bee and a hive. I finished it feeling I knew...how bees think and live. This is what sets us humans apart—our imagination can...create a complete, believable world so different from our own." Tracy Chevalier Ea, a dolphin from the Longi tribe (i.e. a spinner dolphin) feels like an outsider. Unlike the other dolphins in her pod, she suffers from a type of deafness and is unable to perform the spinning ritual like the others. When tragedy strikes her family, Ea blames herself and decides to leave the pod without knowing that dangers are lurking everywhere in the ocean. Can Ea survive without the protection of her pod, especially when she encounters a group of arrogant dolphins from the Tursiops tribe (i.e. bottlenose dolphins)? While Ea is the central character of the story, Laline Paull introduced us to the vast ocean world from the perspectives of, among others, the Rorqual (a baleen whale), the Remora (who attaches to dolphins), the Humphead Wrasse (who is able to change its gender), the Fugu (also known as a pufferfish which can be lethally poisonous), Devi (the First Wife of Lord Ku, the leader of the Tursiops tribe), and Google (a military marine dolphin).

Also set in the 70s, but this time in Belfast, Louise Kennedy’s Trespasses sees a young Catholic woman fall in love with a Protestant married man. What makes it a quiet masterpiece is its utter conviction and evocation of emotion, time and place, with unexpected moments of humour while it sweeps towards its inevitable conclusion. Even though you know where it is heading, the ending offers a moment of such clarity and unsentimental connection that we were all moved to tears. Devastating and beautiful, there is not one false note. A changing ocean, becoming inexplicably hostile. The struggle for resources, the anxiety, the anger. The ocean is full of miracles, not least the fact that it gives us the oxygen for every other breath we take. Our survival is inextricably linked to ocean health, yet our species continues to degrade and exploit it. Terrible details to face, yet countless wonders. How could we do this to our world? How can we stop it?” I loved how the author had done so much research into the animals and topics discussed. I learned how dolphins sleep (very interesting, go Google it). Speaking of which, the word "Google" will always upset me now after this book, so thanks for that! (You'd better read to find out why). Each pod has pride and virtue, each feels above the other. They do not know they share one fatal flaw: they think they know this ocean"It was rotting and he guessed its mother had stayed beside her little one, until she could no longer bear it. Or the sharks came. And yet … there were also many sharks caught in the veil of death.” I found myself in a magical underworld and I was in awe. I appreciate all the research that Paull conducted for this book as I learnt so much. The ramora fish disgusted yet fascinated me! The effects of the dreamfish was mesmerising. While not for everyone, I found POD bizarre in the best possible way and compulsively readable. Paull’s impressive research delivered another haunting and disturbing story.

The narrative is shared by Ea, a spinner dolphin separated from her pod after a tragedy who ultimately ends up forced to become a member of the Megapod of bottlenose dolphins; a lone Rorqual whale whose sad song Ea hears; a giant Napoleon Wrasse who also finds himself alone; and Google, a military-trained dolphin who has spent most of his life in the company of “anthrops”. In the course of the story, we also meet a parasitic Remora fish that attaches itself to Ea and the salpa salpa, tranquilizer fish that are consumed for their ability to induce sleep and help with pain among the cetacean creatures. In presenting the story from these unique PoVs and depicting the affection and unity amongst those in the same pod, the empathy and concern for one another and how they are often helpless in the face of exploitation and external interference, the author does a brilliant job of humanizing these sea creatures. The author’s impeccable research is evident in how she describes oceanic life. The author’s vivid imagery of the depths of the ocean and marine life as seen from the perspective of its inhabitants as their perception of the world above and the “demons” that threaten their way of life and their very existence is stunning in its detail. The author is unflinching when she talks about how human interference has resulted in dwindling populations of ocean life, unsafe and polluted living conditions and has disrupted the marine ecosystem and the life cycles and habits of the different species. Ultimately, this is a story of family, sacrifice, loss and survival in the face of life-threatening forces beyond one’s control.

To spin like everyone else was the key to fitting in, and if she could only hear the music of the ocean like everyone else, she too would be able to tune in and do it.