(2) 4-6 Julia on the Go! series. Illustrated by Julie Kim. Picking up right where Swimming into Trouble (rev. 3/24) left off, the story finds Julia Nam, having recovered from her ear infection, back in the water, preparing for a regional swim meet. When Coach Marissa takes a leave of absence because of a family health emergency, a new coach steps in. Julia is sure that Coach Nathan "was the angriest, shoutiest swimming coach that the Vancouver Vipers had ever had." His harsh and commanding coaching style, bitter tone of voice, and sour facial expressions cause several swimmers to leave the team, including Julia's best friend. She becomes closer to Olivia, who she previously thought was unfriendly but now realizes is a lot of fun. Julia suspects that she needs to look differently at things she doesn't like and ultimately realizes that she jumped to negative conclusions about Coach Nathan. Black-and-white illustrations help bring the swim team, coach drama, and friend dynamics to life. A lighthearted story that challenges readers to look deeper and see what's beneath the surface.

Reviewer: Julie Hakim Azzam | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2025

(2) 4-6 Link + Hud series. The high-spirited brothers are up to more high jinks in this entertaining sequel to Link + Hud: Heroes by a Hair (rev. 5/23). In summer, the community rec center, complete with too many pickleball courts and both indoor and outdoor swimming pools, is the place to be. After a sunscreen fight gone wrong results in the outdoor pool's closure, the boys take their copious imaginations inside. They're spotted by a swim coach -- first as human cannonballs, then soaked in their Sunday best (i.e., their version of "wetsuits") -- whose no-nonsense approach seems to be no match for their antics. But after many imaginative and humorous digressions around pirate ships, shark behavior, family pickleball, and more; and with wise words from their "occasional babysitter and former archnemesis" Ms. Joyce ("Lord knows y'all can be a handful, but you good boys. Y'all just gotta show this coach...that y'all can take all that wild energy you got and put it to some good"), the brothers become unlikely joiners. Happily for readers, though, the siblings' stint as team players does not dampen their exuberantly imaginative and individualistic spirits. Dynamic and varied black-and-white illustrations appear throughout, some alongside the lively text, others as cartoon panels, and occasionally overtaking the pages: SPLASHH.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2025

(2) 4-6 Illustrated by Joe Cepeda. Thirteen-year-old Kai is anxious to continue the family legacy on his new elite swim team. Since his superstar older sister, Cali, disappeared while surfing two years before, swimming has felt bittersweet. Authorities have moved on from the search, but Kai receives signs that Cali is still out there: a dolphin with unique markings that the two of them had spotted together visits when he surfs, and Kai even hears Cali call out to him from their backyard beach in the middle of the night. When Kai discovers his sister's favorite book about an ancient, underwater Realm, the mythical sunken Island of California, ruled by Queen Califia (for whom Cali is named), he becomes convinced that's where she has gone. The novel is divided into four sections—Above, Below, Between, Beyond—and excerpts from the mythology book are interspersed, mirroring the plot's blend of fantasy and realism. Kai tries to keep his grief distant, but it permeates his life, both with his newfound obsession with mythology and with more earthly concerns such as awkward interactions with peers addressing his loss and the worrying drop in his swimming performance. Whimsical pencil-style digital drawings bring the elaborate Realm to life in a way that feels cathartic, and for anyone who has experienced the call of the water, this book is a thoughtful exploration of the wonders of the ocean—real, imagined, and unexplained.

Reviewer: Monica de los Reyes | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2025

(2) 4-6 Julia on the Go! series. Illustrated by Julie Kim. The rec center is nine-year-old Julia Nam's second home: it's where her parents' restaurant, Sushi to Go, is located, as well as the library and the swimming pool where she is the youngest member of the swim team. Fiercely driven, Julia goes hard in warm-ups and doesn't let up until practice is over. She lives for time trials, which her coach calls Personal Best Day, or PBD. When an ear infection forces her to take a ten-day break from swimming, she goes stir-crazy at the thought of missing PBD and the chance to qualify to compete in a regional meet. Her parents advise her that she needs to be patient and "roll with it," punning on the sushi rolls they sell. But she just can't, and readers benefit from the often-humorous trouble she gets into. Kim's black-and-white illustrations bring the rec center environment to life. Ahn subtly fleshes out Julia's world, noting in passing how the young athlete sometimes went to school hungry when her Korean immigrant parents juggled part-time jobs. This spirited first book in a projected series delivers a meaningful message about resilience, the value of patience and flexibility, and the benefits of teamwork and community building.

Reviewer: Julie Hakim Azzam | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2024

(2) K-3 A dull day at the seaside yields to heart-pounding action. Danny's mother suggests that her mopey son take the dog for a walk on the beach, encouraging him to: "Keep your eyes open; you never know what you might see." In trademark Browne fashion ([Hide and Seek, rev. 11/18; What If...?, rev. 9/14), stable, symmetrical compositions echo Danny's mood as he and Scruff, a hairy yellow terrier mutt who embodies his name, pass glum beachside cottages to reach a bland, featureless beach beneath lowering gray clouds. Scruff's delight in a game of fetch lifts Danny's spirits, and the boy is further engaged when he spots faces and shapes in the beach rocks, studying them intently. Then he notices people waving at a far-off speck in the water who appears to be waving back. "Fetch!" he tells Scruff, and the dog obliges, swimming "on and on and on" in an edge-of-your-seat three-page sequence. Four half-page panels limit readers to Danny's foreshortened views of Scruff nearing the tiny, floundering figure and then slowly, slowly swimming back; the visual pacing is highly effective. A whale jumps joyfully in the background as Scruff leads the exhausted swimmer -- Danny's older brother! -- out of the surf against a now-bright-blue sky. Both a terribly high-stakes adventure and a celebration of the act of looking closely -- a favored theme of Browne's -- this day at the beach will have young readers riveted.

Reviewer: Vicky Smith | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2024

(2) 4-6 Illustrated by Veronica Agarwal. At the start of this graphic novel, swimmer Tyler "Shark Fin" de Lugo has just gotten his cast off after a broken arm. It seems like perfect timing, with sleepaway camp about to begin. But Ty's best friend, swim teammate, and camp bunkmate Max has been acting distant, angry, and strange, and Ty's negative self-talk -- in both the first-person ("I got fat. I'm not good enough anymore. I'm useless as a friend, useless to the team") and dialogue ("Was he making fun of me? I must look like garbage right now." "Of COURSE he was making fun of you...idiot") -- is preventing him from getting back in the water. In fact, when Ty is feeling low, the graphic-panel art often shows him imagining being nearly drowned. Durfey-Lavoie and Agarwal (Just Roll with It, rev. 9/21) present another sympathetic and flawed protagonist whose experiences and interactions are understandable and affecting. A few helpful adults at the camp, including a former high school football star turned chill-dude counselor, give Ty some strategies and messaging for countering his insecurities and moving forward. Easy-to-follow panel art in subdued hues helps set the summer-camp scene, reflecting challenges that are cooperative both physically (e.g., building a boat) and emotionally (opening up to a friend -- and maybe more) along with individual growth and acceptance.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2024

(2) PS Illustrated by Matt Hunt. The story opens with a boat floating in the moat of a castle. In the boat, there is a stoat who "played / in the boat / and rocked / in the boat / and rolled / in the boat." Everything's great until a goat (wearing a bright yellow coat7, naturally) jumps in the boat, also wanting to float. This book has a Seussian level of rhythm, rhyme, and repetition, which builds a boisterous, loopy energy. The illustrations see and raise this spirit in bold colors with few lines and a mixed-media look. The compositions begin with a wide field and then zoom in tight to heighten the tension when the duo starts bickering and tempers escalate. "This is a boat for a stoat / not a goat!" This book is funny, too -- particularly images of the goat with its round, stunned eyes and skinny legs akimbo. Eventually the fighting tips the boat. Once in the water, it becomes clear that the stoat can't swim, and the goat has a choice to make. This book makes for a dynamic read-aloud, but with its predictability, simple language, and repetition, this is also an excellent choice for new readers.