Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Grayson
    Grayson
    Grayson
    Audiobook2 hours

    Grayson

    Written by Lynne Cox

    Narrated by Lynne Cox

    3.5/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    An early-morning workout becomes an enchanting adventure when a record-holding swimmer reunites a baby whale and its mother. An inspiring, irresistible story for all ages, from the beloved author of Swimming to Antarctica.It's five o'clock in the morning and still dark. Swimming outside the wave break off the Catalina coast, training for her next long-distance swim (she has already crossed the English Channel twice), 17-year-old Lynne Cox senses that something is following her. She worries that it might be a great white shark.Instead, it's a baby gray whale, separated from its mother on their journey to the Bering Sea 8,000 miles away. Lynne needs to leave the water to rest, but she knows that if she does, the calf will follow her onto shore and die. To save its life, she must reunite mother and calf in the vastness of the Pacific Ocean.Miracles happen now and then. Sometimes we recognize them when they occur; sometimes it takes years of experience to understand. Looking back on that chilly morning, a beloved author and inspirational speaker shares her personal story of love, hope, loss, and faith.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHighbridge Company
    Release dateJul 24, 2006
    ISBN9781598872699
    Grayson

    Related to Grayson

    Related audiobooks

    Women's Biographies For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    Related categories

    Reviews for Grayson

    3.5/5

    210 ratings21 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 5/5
      This little book can easily be read in one or two sittings. It takes place in the Pacific Ocean in the waters off Seal Beach Pier in San Diego. This heartfelt true story of doing the right thing will appeal to all ages. While it's told in a simple, straightforward manner, it contains many profound truths.A teenage girl is in the final stages of her rigorous morning swim when her friend onshore tells her she has to turn back to deeper waters because she is being followed by an 18-foot-long (!) baby Gray Whale who will surely die if he follows her to shore. Gathering uncharted reserves of strength, Lynne turns around to help Grayson find his mother. She clings to her friend's wise words: ... "Sometimes the important things take time, sometimes they don't happen all at once, sometimes answers come out of time and struggle, and learning"... as she undertakes this incredible journey of love.Lynne's beautiful writing allows the reader to enter this magical underwater "mermaid's world where color and light were transformed into liquid. I swam through colors, through liquid silvers, whites, yellows, greens, purples, and blues....sunlight became liquid too. Undulating beams of white and gold and silver light whorled and wavered around me..." Come and join Lynne on a journey that changed her life. Highly recommended to animal lovers of all ages.
    • 3/5
      Light, heart-warming tale of a swimmer and the baby whale she befriends. Seems a bit forced at times, but otherwise a nice story (ostensibly true). Tear jerky toward the end.
    • 3/5
      A little boring and overly simple/sentimental. Lacks depth. Short, which is a plus. Not a waste of time but not a life-changer either. Extremely copious descriptive language takes up at least half the book, because the story itself has such little content. A neat little tale though.
    • 4/5
      A great, quick and easy read. An incredible story of the author's encounter with a lost baby gray whale. I think this would inspire curiosity about and respect for the oceans in someone who didn't already think that way....so, everyone should read it in my opinion!
    • 3/5
      There are good things to say about this little book about a young long distance swimmer from Seal Beach, Ca and her amazing encounter with a lost baby gray whale. The writer/narrator brings the ocean world to life and paints a picture of teaming biodiversity off the shores of Southern California. She weaves in educational snippets for young students who might have an interest in marine biology, and she does it by telling a story that is sure to pull the heart strings of some readers.That having been said, I really thought that this short 150 page story could have been shorter. I am personally not a fan of writing that attempts to outdo itself with its expressions of creative imagery. What do I mean by that? I mean finding multiple different ways to tell us the same thing, and this happened often enough for me to want to skim to get past it. One example came when the narrator expressed how hungry she was, then proceeded to list a literal menu of options that could have satisfied that hunger. I got the point halfway through the list and didn't need more.Still, it's a nice little book to add to one's collection, especially if you are familiar with the little community of Seal Beach, California.
    • 4/5
      This was a mellow, soothing audio to listen to on short road trip.
    • 4/5
      This heartwarming story might leave you short of breath. It follows competitive swimmer Lynne Cox on a practice swim as she discovers a baby gray whale that was separated from its mother in ocean waters off the coast of California. She knows that she cannot come ashore since the baby whale might follow her and end up dying on the beach. Instead, she heads offshore to an area of oil rigs in hopes that she can spot the baby whale's mother. Cox makes multiple deep dives when the baby gray whale seems to have disappeared. The baby gray whale cannot survive without the nutrition and protection provided by its mother. This book is a lovely tribute to mother nature in all her glory - with a tip of the hat to the mighty ocean, her thriving plants such as kelp, and the magnificent creatures which abound in the sea.
    • 3/5
      This was on the bookshelf at the guest cottage where I'm staying, and it was pretty enough to be irresistible (I'm easy that way). Not particularly well-written—more like an extended version of one of those heart-warming/amazing animal stories people link to on Facebook—but it was short and the story was quite charming, and I enjoyed the ocean life descriptions. Here's a good example of a book I would have put down after the first few pages if I were reading it as an e-book, but I loved holding the object in my hands—it was small, nicely designed, deckle edges—and happy to pick it back up again whenever I'd put it down.
    • 4/5
      This was a truly interesting book. The author is a long distance swimmer who during the course of an early morning swim was taken to by a young abandoned right whale. The author stays in the water throughout the entire story coaxing the whale about and observing it, trying to find a way to reconnect it with its mother. She gets attached of course and names the whale Grayson since she swims about with him while the morning reflects a gray sun. It was a simple story, highly addictive, even if it's not your typical fare. I thoroughly enjoyed myself as I listened, and I would recommend the experience to anyone with a few hours to kill and a tolerance for happy endings.
    • 2/5
      If you're a swimmer - this may be even better read for you.
      Descriptive prose is enjoyable and paints a picture of the ocean that I would never have been aware of.
      Fast read and worthwhile for this accounting of a real & magical encounter with baby whale.
    • 4/5
      Die Extremschwimmerin Lynne Cox erzählt die Geschichte, wie ihr eines frühen Morgens beim Training im offenen Meer ein junger Wal folgt (klein ist er mit fünfeinhalb Meter Länge eigentlich nicht). Der Wal hat seine Mutter verloren und das siebzehnjährige Mädchen schwimmt nun stundenlang mit ihm im Meer und hilft ihm sie zu finden. Es ist eine einfach erzählte Geschichte voller Kraft und mit einem rührenden Ende.
    • 3/5
      This is a quick and easy read about Lynne Cox' experience reuniting a baby gray whale and his mother. If you're looking for something inspiring (and a book that will make you feel like a fat slob) then this is a great choice!
    • 3/5
      Long on the to be read list, this was recommended by some in our 75 challenge group. When the author was 17 years old and preparing for long distance swim races, while swimming in the ocean in Seal Beach, California, she was followed by a baby gray whale.The baby whale could not find his mother. Realizing it was up to her to rescue the whale, she swam many miles paving a safe route for the baby in the prayer and hope that his mother could be reunited.This is lyrically written and a testimony to courage and the love of nature.Recommended!
    • 3/5
      A young gal swimming alone off the California coast happens across a baby whale who has lost his mother. The two spend several hours swimming together in search of the whale's mom. The coast guard, an old time beach geezer and the local community all get involved. Grayson is eventually reuinted with his mom and life lessons are learned all around. Oh yes, this is a true story.
    • 4/5
      Lynne Cox, the well known long distance and deep water swimmer has written a lovely short memoir about her encounter with a baby gray whale while training off the coast of California when she was 17. She weaves many details together; long distance training, encounters with sea life, and how this encounter with the whale impacted her spiritual and emotional life. Good book for teens and adults.
    • 5/5
      Elizabeth G- I loved this book because it was an amazing and inspiring story. It is about how Lynne came across a baby gray whale while training and helped it to find its mother and I would recommend it to anyone who likes to read short, great books.
    • 4/5
      This a very simple story about an girl and the baby Grey Whale that follows her during a training open water swim near Seal Beach, California. Despite its simplicity, or because of it, it's a beautiful story of one woman's journey with not only the whale, but the ocean life in general. There are some absolutely breathtaking scenes of living with and around stingrays, grunion, seals, whales and phosphorescence. On some level, this book reminded me slightly of Gifts From The Sea, in its reflections of a woman's journey and the world around her. This is actually a great little book to be shared with a child (my niece, who is almost 9, asks me about the "baby whale book" all the time). I really liked when the author found herself in a confusing, difficult or stressful moment and how she calmed down to find the solution ~ wonderful lessons for both children and adults. Highly recommended for something a little off the beaten path and if you have any interest in ocean life and making the world a slightly better place.
    • 3/5
      When she was 17 years old, long distance swimmer Lynne Cox found her morning workout interrupted by the presence of a baby gray whale. The baby whale was lost from its mother and began to follow Lynne as she swam. Lynne couldn't swim for shore for fear that the whale would follow her and beach itself. This account tells of all her hopes and fears as she swam beside "Grayson" that morning. In great detail, Lynne describes the ocean as it changed that morning and all the wildlife she saw. It's a little gem of a book that really brings you into the Pacific ocean on that morning.
    • 4/5
      This was a super quick read. Though, I am unsure how I feel about this book. The story was very interesting, though I felt like it may have been a bit exaggerated. It's hard to say. Cox wrote this book many years after the actual event happened. Because of this, I feel it may have been overly done in story form. And that being said, how could she possibly be remember so much about what happened in just a short three hours? No matter, the story itself is incredible. Cox has a way with words that really make you feel like you a right there in the water, with her and the whale. What an experience it must have been. I have never been a swimmer, so I really have no clue how she was able to stay in the water and swim that long with the whale. I can't even imagine. But I guess that is what she was training to do....Despite a tad of arrogance, the book was a very touching portrait of man and how it can interact with wild animals.
    • 4/5
      Lynne Cox swam every morning when she was a teenager, preparing herself for competitions. She was used to the other living things she encountered in the Southern California coastal waters, but one morning she became quite frightened when she sensed something very large in the ocean near where she was swimming. The large presence turned out to be a baby grey whale who had lost his mother. Grayson tells the story of what happened that day and what Lynne did to help this baby get back to his mother.
    • 4/5
      Short book, long distance swimmer on a workout encounters a baby whale separated from its mother, spends several hours with the baby trying to help mamma and baby reunite. I skipped a lot of the philosophizing, but the ocean and creature discriptions were grea.