BOOKMONGER
Cool down, keep chill with ‘The Sea in Winter’
Last week, in a house with no air con-
ditioning on a very hot day, here was my
approach for staying cool. First, I poured a
glass of lemonade with ice cubes, then I set-
tled down with a story that took place during
a chilly season.
The book was author Christine Day’s sec-
ond work of middle grade fiction, titled “The
Sea in Winter.” Day is enrolled in the Upper
Skagit Tribe, and this book is published by
Heartdrum, a HarperCollins imprint that pub-
lishes Indigenous-centered stories for youth,
written by Indigenous authors.
The central figure in this tale is Maisie
Cannon, a Seattle middle school student and
a promising ballet dancer. Maisie’s having
a terrible year, suffering a trajectory-chang-
ing injury early in the school year. Months
later, she’s still recuperating and unable to get
back to dance class. Meanwhile, all of her best
friends, also dancers, are auditioning for excit-
ing summer dance camps around the country.
Maisie’s trying not to be envious of her
friends, but it’s hard. There’s nothing she
wants more than to be back among them,
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pursuing her own ballet ambitions. Little
else matters to her. She has no interest in her
schoolwork. She’s become moody at home
and irritable with her younger brother.
But with a school break coming up, her
family plans a trip to Washington’s Olympic
Peninsula, hoping that a change of activity
will help Maisie’s attitude improve.
Maisie’s mom is Makah and her stepdad is
enrolled in the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe.
They want to take their kids to some of the
places that were important to them when they
were growing up. The plan is to go clam-
ming and even do some hiking. Maisie’s doc-
tor gave permission for her to undertake these
activities, if she moves about with care. (But
seriously: hiking on beaches, muddy trails
and slick boardwalks in the middle of winter?
Did her parents really think that one through,
given her condition?)
This story deals with the importance of
developing resilience in the face of disap-
pointment and of practicing patience in grap-
pling with limitations. It also shares Maisie’s
gradual recognition that turning a cold shoul-
der to gestures of support from family, friends
and teachers is self-defeating.
Told from Maisie’s point of view, the story
takes its time to develop. Early chapters are
filled with extensive descriptions of scene.
We learn in detail about a line of idling buses
waiting for students at the end of Maisie’s
school day, a rehabilitation clinic waiting
room and a motel room in Port Angeles.
This stylistic choice feels overdone, but
given the story’s point of view, perhaps it
makes sense.
While this story may have special rele-
vance for Indigenous youth, it should appeal
to middle graders overall. Family and com-
munity connection, combined with Maisie’s
evolving sense of possibility, community and
learning to keep chill are valuable messages
for adolescent readers.
The Bookmonger is Barbara Lloyd McMi-
chael, who writes this weekly column focus-
ing on books, authors and publishers of
the Pacific Northwest. Contact her at bar-
baralmcm@gmail.com.
This
week’s
book
‘The Sea in
Winter’ by
Christine
Day
Heartdrum
– 272 pp –
$16.99