Elizabeth, Queen of the Seas
Title: Elizabeth, Queen of the Seas
Writer: Lynne Cox
Illustrator: Brian Floca
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade Books
Cover image from Elizabeth, Queen of the Seas by Lynne Cox, illustrated by Brian Floca, © Schwartz & Wade Books / Penguin Random House, 2014. Used under fair use for educational review purposes.
Summary
This book tells the (fabricated) story of an elephant seal who lived in a park in Christchurch, New Zealand. It purports to tell the story of Elizabeth, an elephant seal who lived in Christchurch from 1970 until her death in 1985.
Cultural Analysis
The story itself is well written and engaging. It purports to tell the story of Elizabeth, Queen of the Seas, an elephant seal who lived in the Avon River in Christchurch, New Zealand. It is nominally told through the eyes of David, a young white New Zealander who thought of Elizabeth as his friend. This book was written by Lynne Cox, a white American, who has not got a lived-in experience of being a New Zealander. It was illustrated by Brian Floca, also a white American, who has no ties to New Zealand.
From my own research, Elizabeth lived in Christchurch from 1970 until 1985 (Wikipedia) where she died of a viral infection. She was never moved from her location as the laws of NZ disallow tampering with wildlife (Stuff 2012).
Literary Quality
It is well written, but not exceptionally so. It uses language that is easily understood by an elementary school child. There is no symbolism within the book beyond the surface message of belonging. The central theme seems to be that everyone belongs where they are, just like Elizabeth belonged in Christchurch even though they kept trying to move her away. This message would have resounded more clearly if more attention had been paid to the racial makeup of the background characters and by the inclusion of native Māori ethos. I’m envisioning a book where the central human character is Māori and she or he is also struggling with living in Christchurch as she or he feels out of place in a primarily white European city. By the end of the book, she or he could have come to the same conclusion that she or he belongs in the city just as much as Elizabeth does. Barring that, the book leaves one feeling slightly warm, but mentally inert.
Language/Speech
This book uses academic American English, so it is not even representative of the country it is set in.
Characters
There are only two named characters: Elizabeth the seal, and David, a young white New Zealander, who is sad when the authorities haul her away.
Cultural Background
This was written by Lynne Cox, a white American long-distance swimmer with no discernible ties to New Zealand. It was illustrated by Brian Floca, a white American, also with no ties to New Zealand.
Lifestyle
The book is presented from a singularly white lens. The majority of the human characters portrayed are white. This story would have been set in the 1970s at the earliest and 1985 at the latest. I cannot find the specific demographic information for the number of Māori (native New Zealanders) online but one summation of governmental census data I’ve read from New Zealand’s government statistics agency says that in 1971 New Zealand’s Māori population was close to 300,000 whereas the total population of New Zealand at the time was just under 3 million, so roughly 10% of the total population. So, one might expect to see at least 10% of the population be Māori, but when I count the total number of individuals who definitively appear to be a race/ethnicity other than white, I counted only 13 individuals in total out of 208 individuals represented from cover to cover. That’s 6.25%, which is almost half of what it should be. This white European lens pervades the entire work from cover to cover and not a single word was written about the native population, or other diverse groups, which continue to make an increasingly larger part of New Zealand society.
Author photo of Lynne Cox from her official website. Used under fair use for educational purposes.
Artistic Quality
The art is childlike, and only central characters are drawn with clarity. David, the main character, along with Elizabeth, are drawn and colored most accurately, while the remainder of the characters are drawn a bit out of focus and with less detail. This means that any Māori or other people of color are not drawn with precision, which effectively flattens visible difference and could lead to accusations of whitewashing the narrative. While this childlike style may be intended to appeal to young readers, the effect is that background characters are indistinct, and cultural diversity is erased.
Illustration Purpose
The purpose of the illustrations is to simply illustrate the story. It provides little else beyond that.
Purpose
This was written ostensibly because the author visited New Zealand and heard the story of the seal and thought it would be fun idea to write about. She also may have resonated with the idea of the seal swimming great distances because the author herself is a long-distance swimmer. The inauthenticity of the story itself, along with the unnuanced portrayal of New Zealand culture, are the greatest indicators that this was the primary purpose. This work does nothing to aid the reader in a deeper understanding of New Zealand and its history and culture.
Insider/Outsider Status
Both the author and the illustrator are outsiders. Neither of them seemed to have done any study into the complexities of life within New Zealand. They wrote/illustrated a story that could have been set in Anytown, America.
Conclusion
This book was extremely disappointing on two levels. On an academic level, it made up a story about a real seal. As a person who strives to get an accurate understanding of history, this was close to blasphemy. It purports to tell the true story, but it seems the only true thing is the seal’s name. On a personal level, I have visited New Zealand and its beauty and grandeur is not portrayed in the least. I do not recommend this book if you are trying to teach children about New Zealand and the diverse ways of life found therein.