The Barnsley whale : the true story of the world's first inland whale hunt

The blue whale is the largest creature to have ever lived on this planet.

Remember when one came to your town on a lorry? Steven Deput does. He remembers the whale: the real blue whale that came to Barnsley on a lorry.

But why was it there? Where had it come from? Why could he find no mention of it anywhere? And why would no one believe him? Everyone laughed. They called him mad. He had to prove them wrong. Along with a handful of fellow "whale believers", Deput set sail on the world's first inland whale hunt. "The Barnsley Whale" is the humorous account of their epic voyage to uncover the mystery and it will plunge the reader deep into forgotten worlds.

Along the way, brave seas of uncertainty where fact is far stranger than fiction, face gales of derision that will drive you onto the very shores of madness, and meet football fans, fishermen, Vikings, billionaires, miners, saints and people who shout into mobile phones.

Encounter, too, weird and wonderful animals, including a 200-year-old French footballing monkey, an elephant that lives in a peanut butter jar and fleas dressed as Mexicans. And be right on deck as the story of a blue whale on a lorry is uncovered, bringing a long-forgotten marine mammal back to life.

Remember: this whale didn't just sail into Barnsley.

He came to your town too!