The Lagoon

**Timeless narrative of human connection to animals:**Dorsey explores his connection to the gray whales of the lagoon on spiritual, emotional, and physical levels, and what this means for himself and for his wife, Irene.

**The destination for one of the greatest migrations on earth:**Gray Whales make one of the longest annual migrations of any mammal, traveling about 10,000 miles round-trip and in some cases upwards of 14,000 miles, with the San Ignacio Lagoon as one of the endpoints and the whales' nursery

**The people of the lagoon:**Dorsey brings to life the people who have called the lagoon their home as well as those who do so today—includinga Mexican fisherman named Pacheco Mayoral, who claims to have been the first person to pet a wild whale, and how that led to him being recognized internationally as the godfather of modern whale watching

Author is an accomplished nature writer: Dorsey has written close to eight hundred essays or articles about nature in publications like *BBC Wildlife, Hemispheres Magazine for United Airlines, Natural History Magazine, Sea Kayaker Magazine, Los Angeles Times, California Literary Review, Chicago Sun Times, BBC Travel, Hidden Compass, Panorama Journal, Chicken Soup for the Soul,*and Geographic Expeditio**ns.

A Gray Whale version of Jane Goodall and the chimpanzees of Gombe, Tanzania

**Historical threads:**weaves in the deadly history of whaling, the history of whale watching, and the history of Baja and the San Ignacio Lagoon

**Multi-layered love story:**Dorsey's journeys to the lagoon are infused with his relationship with his wife Irene, his relationships with specific whales, and his love for the people of San Ignacio

**A warning about hot-button topics of climate change and over-development:**The narrative is driven forward by the impending threats of climate change and over-development, serving as a reminder of the importance of protecting our planet.

Includes twenty-five of Dorsey's award-winning photographs of the lagoon and its whales