Marina in the Middle

March 1, 2023
Being a middle child is challenging, especially in a very large family. Summer is almost over, and 10-year-old Marina Ali-O'Connor has successfully avoided going out on her family's boats the whole time. All that's left is the Labor Day parade in which all the boats in Sunrise Lagoon get decked out in lights. Marina's moms, concerned about her odd behavior, get her to promise to join that event. Even though she's been on them her entire life and Mom is an expert boater, Marina knows the statistics: Boats are dangerous. Plus, there's no one to look out for her if something goes wrong. Her two older sisters, one adopted and one biological from a previous marriage, are glued to Mom's side, obsessed with her boat business. Her two younger siblings, the twins, demand Mama's attention, with the added wrinkle that they're her biological kids. Meanwhile, Marina doesn't have anyone to cling to or even know much about her background. Mom and her older sisters are White; Mama and the twins are part Syrian (the rest of their ancestry is unspecified), but Marina only knows that her birth mother was Mexican. A new neighbor Marina's age proposes an idea: make Marina someone's favorite in her family so she'll have a safety net. This second series installment focuses on symptoms of severe anxiety emerging within a loving support network. Readers will appreciate the boisterous family dynamics and thoughtful treatment of mental health concerns. Entertaining and satisfying. (Fiction. 8-12)

COPYRIGHT(2023) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

March 6, 2023
In this joyful series opener set on an idyllic New Jersey lagoon, 11-year-old Samantha Ali-O’Connor vows to save her Mom’s struggling boat charter and repair business as a way to “solidify her place” in her bustling adoptive family. Alongside 11-year-old Harbor, nine-year-old Marina (who’s also adopted), seven-year-old twins Cordelia and Lir, Mom, and schoolteacher Mama, Sam is both the most recent addition to the Ali-O’Connor household and the only member who can’t swim, which, despite her moms’ assurances, distresses her. Accidentally overhearing her parents discussing their strained finances, Sam realizes that her dream of taking over the family company is in jeopardy, and she launches a secret campaign to attract business before summer’s end. But Sam quickly discovers that she needs help, and she turns to four-months-older Harbor, with whom she shares an intense rivalry, as well as the Badger brothers, who spend summers across the lagoon. Moments of madcap humor and familial warmth characterize this emotionally generous summer tale from Melleby (Camp QUILTBAG), which showcases the author’s command of fully realized characterization and distinct relationship dynamics. Most characters read as white; the twins share Mama’s Syrian genes. Publishing simultaneously: Marina in the Middle (The House on Sunrise Lagoon #2). Ages 8–12. Agent: Jim McCarthy, Dystel, Goderich & Bourret.