The Great Wide Sea by M.H. Herlong- LOVED IT!
My second choice of the summer was a book I had never heard of and just randomly stumbled upon in tiny Cape Cod bookstore. From page one I was hooked.
The Great Wide Sea:
This is the story of Ben, Dylan, and Gerry. Three brothers who suffer the sudden death of their mother and an emotional freeze out from their father. Almost immediately after their mother's death, the father has sold their house, packed up three duffle bags of their belongings, and has them all headed to Miami where they will board the boat that will be their home for the next year. Ben, the oldest brother, is a wonderful character that you will instantly care about- you want a happy ending for Ben and his brothers (the father- not so sure-debatable), but the happy ending is a hard sought journey. The boys have to deal with their grief, a father who deserts them in more way than one, and a fatal storm that changes everything.
A definite read! If you liked Peak or Hatchet, I think you will like this book even more. It has all the adventure of those stories, but it also tells the story of family and the special bond between brothers.
Excerpt: " Once upon a time there was a family. Then a boat. And then islands. Once upon a time three boys were lost at sea. One almost drowned. One almost went crazy. One fell off a cliff.
Gerry says I am making it up, but I'm not. Everything I tell him is the truth. I just don't tell him everything." (page 7)
It was very entertaining. At times it was slow, but that was briefly. It is a very exciting book.
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