The whale is one of the wonders of the world. These titles look at the magnificent animal from two perspectives:

• "The Whale Warriors: The Battle at the Bottom of the World to Save the Planet's Largest Mammals" by Peter Heller (Free Press, $15, 298 pages): In the paperback edition of the 2007 best-seller, the author teams with iconoclastic Sea Shepherd Conservation Society founder Paul Watson and his volunteer crew. Their mission: to intercept and stop a Japanese whaling armada steaming toward the Antarctic, with one thing on its mind. This is a rousing account of what happens when high ideals meet brutal reality. Heller is a veteran adventure writer and contributing editor to Outside magazine.

• "Wild Blue: A Natural History of the World's Largest Animal" by Don Bortolotti (Thomas Dunne, $24.95, 336 pages): Science writer Bortolotti spent three years assembling this definitive work on the blue whale, and it's a fascinating mix of biology and history. Given that the blue was hunted to the verge of extinction in the early 20th century, one of his observations has particular resonance: "The blue whale's greatest enemy may be human ignorance."

Top mysteries

There's Macavity Award news. But first this: The annual award is given by the Mystery Readers International for the group's favorite mysteries in four categories. The winners, announced earlier this month, are:

• Best mystery novel: Laura Lippman for "What the Dead Know."

• Best first mystery: Tana French for "In the Woods."

• Best mystery short story: Rhys Bowen for "Please Watch Your Step."

• Best mystery nonfiction: Roger Sobin (as editor) for "The Essential Mystery Lists."

• A special award – for the Sue Feder Memorial Historical Mystery – to Ariana Franklin for "Mistress of the Art of Death."

For more information, including the runners-up, log on to www.mysteryreaders.org.

Mendocino photos

More than 60 vintage photos of scenes from another era – part of the vast collection shot by the late photographer Aurelius O. Carpenter (1836 to 1919) – are on display at the California State Railroad Museum through Jan. 25. It's an exhibit worth catching, ranging from shots of vintage trains and scenes showing the state's timber industry to portraits of Pomo Indians and the interiors and exteriors of homes.

The book is worth catching as well. It features some of Carpenter's best works. "Photographer of the Mendocino Frontier" (Grace Hudson Museum & Sun House, $19.99, 118 pages) is sold at the railroad museum and at amazon.com.

To put the man and his pictures in perspective, the railroad museum is offering two 45-minute-long "illustrated presentations" at 1 and 3 p.m. Saturday. They will be hosted by Marvin Schenck, curator of the Grace Hudson Museum in Ukiah.

The presentations are included in the admission fee of $8 general, $3 ages 6 to 17 and free for 5 and younger. According to the museum, "Attendance at each presentation is limited ... to 135 on a first-come, first-seated basis."

The museum is at 111 I St. in Old Sacramento, open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Information: (916) 445-7387 and www. californiastaterailroad museum.org.

Big-buzz alert

It appears that veteran novelist M.J. Rose will have a hit with her just- released "The Memorist" (Mira, $24.95, 464 pages). The plot goes something like this: When Meer Logan drops by the New York offices of a reincarnation foundation, she sees a historic object – a wood game box – that looks exactly like the one she drew pictures of as a child, supposedly from her imagination. Were those childhood pictures really from "past-life memories"? When the box is stolen, she travels to Vienna to unravel a series of related mysteries – where she is shadowed by the FBI, Austrian undercover cops and more than a few opportunistic scoundrels.

In a starred review, Publishers Weekly magazine wrote, "Rose skillfully blends past-life mysteries with present-day chills. The result is a smashing good read."