[Let Me Hear You Whisper is a touching and trenchant two-act play. It] reads beautifully, with good dialogue and characterization, an original plot, and a theme that should appeal to young people. [Helen, a] cleaning woman who has just begun working for an experimental biology laboratory, learns that the dolphin in a laboratory tank has failed to learn to talk and is therefore to be killed. Helen is a gentle, ingenuous person who has chattered with pity and affection to the dolphin. And it talks to her when they are alone, although it will not speak to the staff. She learns that the dolphin knows it was meant to be used for warfare and would not cooperate; the dolphin tells her of a plan: she must get him into a large hamper and take him to the sea. Helen is caught talking to the dolphin, which she's been told not to do, and dismissed. The dolphin says one word, "love," and everybody hears it. If Helen can be brought back and the dolphin speaks to her again, it will not be killed … but it is too late, an angry Helen will not return.
Zena Sutherland, in her review of "Let Me Hear You Whisper," in Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books (reprinted by permission of The University of Chicago Press; © 1974 by The University of Chicago), Vol. 27, No. 11, July-August, 1974, p. 188.
This is a free excerpt of 237 words. There are 241 words (approx.
1 page at 300 words per page) in the full critical essay.
Read the rest of this Criticism with our Zindel, Paul 1936–: Critical Essay by Zena Sutherland Access Pass.
