Whale Island is the main setting of the Thea Stilton Mouseford Academy series and graphic novels.
Geography and Geology[]
Whale Island is a small arrowhead-shaped island southwest of Mouse Island, presumably in the Sea of Mice. A short ways northwest of the island is Windy Island, which is Vissia de Vissen's private island and home of her villa[1] and her exclusive surf center.[2]
Land[]
The island's northeastern region (Very Windy Point, Seashell Beach, and Ram Plain) is notorious for its bad weather and intense winds that bring storms to Whale Island (as implied in the name).
The wildlife of the island is very rich and diverse, even having key points in the island named after the wildlife residing there (Turtle Beach, Seashell Beach, Falcon Peak, Seagull Bay, Seal Grotto, Pelican Cliff, Mussel Point-- the only exceptions to this rule are Butterfly Bay, which might be named more for the shape of the bay rather than its wildlife; and Ram Plain, whose naming convention is unknown). Other regions such as Mount Landslide and Windy Grotto are more named after the hospitality of their respective regions.
The western side of the island is more rugged, as the multi-terraced terrain of Falcon Peak is offset in a westerly direction. The terrain is also less hospitable for possible settlements, with Mount Landslide and Windy Grotto situated there.
The southeastern side of the island is the main hub of Whale Island inhabitants and where all the towns and structures are. The terrain to the east is the most flat, allowing for structures like the towns, Mouseford Academy and the Marine Biology Lab to reside there more comfortably. In the town are buildings like The Flying Dutchman/Ye Olde Cheddar Shop, the Mariners' Inn, the Zanzi Bazaar/The Thrifty Rat and others.
Falcon Peak is the island's centerpiece and the home of Hawk Woods and the Whale Island Observatory. It is flanked by Mount Landslide in the west, Nightingale Woods and Whale Island's town in the south, Mouseford Academy in the East, and Ram Plain up north.
Sea[]
The sea life of Whale Island is one of its key selling points in livelihood and tourism. Whale migration routes consistently pass by Whale Island, and the ocean is a major part of the island's livelihood. The northern side of the island tends to have rough weather, rough enough in fact to tear ships apart.
History[]
More than a thousand years ago during the Viking Age, the Vikings led by Harald the Great discovered Whale Island while in search of fertile lands. Because of the island's incredible fertility and numerous hot springs, Harald's army decided to settle on Whale Island (possibly coining the name themselves) and built their kingdom, of which included a great castle that would later go on to become Mouseford Academy.[3][4]
In the present time, the Whale Island residents (descendants of Harald's colony of Viking settlers) still live in Whale Island to this day, having roughly kept up with the times (enough to have installed a solar energy plant to supply electricity for the whole town) but still in need of modernization.
Residents[]
The residents who grew up on Whale Island are known to be descendants of the initial colony of Vikings, most notable of which are the Whale and Squid families, the oldest families on the island. Among foreign residents are the faculty and students of Mouseford Academy, this group being known for its cultural and ethnic diversity.
Whale Island is slowly growing in popularity as a tourist destination (both for its fascinating history and for its beautifully lush nature), leading to some mega-corporations like De Vissen Cosmetics trying to build tourism facilities there to boost tourism and gain a profit. Mouseford in particular has become a place film crews like using for movie settings involving castles.
Locations[]
- Falcon Peak
- Observatory
- Mount Landslide
- Solar Energy Plant
- Ram Plain
- Very Windy Point
- Turtle Beach
- Beachy Beach
- Mouseford Academy
- Kneecap River
- Mariner's Inn
- Port
- Squid House
- Town Square
- Butterfly Bay
- Mussel Point
- Lighthouse Cliff
- Pelican Cliff
- Nightingale Woods
- Marine Biology Lab
- Hawk Woods
- Windy Grotto
- Seal Grotto
- Seagulls Bay
- Seashell Beach
Trivia[]
- According to a joke Pam makes in the Italian book Stars Academy: Fuori dalle regole (translation: Stars Academy: Against the Rules), Whale Island is situated in the Azores, a cluster of islands west of Portugal, the nation its jurisdiction falls under.
- If one were to check the wildlife of Whale Island as seen in graphic novels 1-4 and the Mouseford Academy books, the wildlife of the island perfectly matches the recorded wildlife of the Azores, down to the detail that raccoons are in fact not endemic to Whale Island and therefore the Azores. [5]
- When Whale Island was introduced in the first Thea Stilton book, The Dragon's Code, Thea states that the island is located on the southwest of Mouse Island. The graphical illustration of her sailing there, however, states that she'd have to sail at a northeasterly direction to get there. Whether or not this is a translation error is unknown.