The Whale Caller is living a quiet life in his bungalow on South Africa's Eastern Cape, spending his mornings calling out to sea to the whales that seem to be calling back to him, eating macaroni cheese each night. The peaceful rhythm of his days are only interrupted by the arrival of the whale tourists each summer: busloads of people with long lenses who fill the streets of this burgeoning new South African town and stare at the man who stands on the cliffs and watches the ocean.

However, soon the whale caller's peace will be permanently shattered when a drunken woman in stilettos who has been following him about for weeks, finally manages to invade his life for good. Together they form a strange and intense love affair, brimming with desire and disappointment, alcohol and jealousy, that threatens to undo them. Beautifully written and utterly original, The Whale Caller's world is by turns enchanting and very real, a place where loneliness and love both bring their share of sorrow and magic.