Ages:
 It's
summertime and
Clee and her brother Simon finally visit Uncle Fishtank Hal
on his beloved barge. What could be better? Lots of things,
thinks Clee not to long after they arrive. Why, the barge barely
floats and Uncle Hal's clearly not much of a sailor. This holiday
isn't turning out as she thought it would.
As surely as
the tides pull out the sea and push it in again, Clee's hopes
for her summer wane before they wax full in this warm addition
to Deborah Turney Zagwyn's lovely look at the four seasons. Simon
finally visit Uncle Fishtank Hal's beloved barge—the
floating home they've heard so much about—expectations
and reality crash like waves against the shore. Why, the
barge barely floats, the galley is a mess, and Uncle Hal's
clearly not much of a sailor at all. Clee just can't hide
her disappointment, but the sea and Hal's cheerfulness work
their magic in the end. Deborah Turney Zagwÿn presents
a final season of change in the life of Clee.
Deborah Turney
Zagwyn says, "A colorful, larger-than-life
relative is the best kind in the eyes of a child. He or she livens
up family
gatherings with stories of legendary proportions.
Fish tank Hal is that kind of uncle, and for years, Clee has been
his greatest admirer. But Clee is old enough, in this last of the
series, to be critical of her Uncle hal's shortcomings. He forever
putters, but never gets things ship-shape. The differences between
true circumstances and embellished reality has always interested
me.
How Clee adapts and finally accepts him was fun to explore. Uncle
Hal's ineptness as knot-tying is finally offset in her mind by
his ability to make the best of things.
"As I researched hermit crabs for this story,
my admiration for them grew. They are the ultimate scavenger
recyclers, real
homebodies.
The ocean is the perfect backdrop - complicated yet straightforward,
unpredictable yet dependable. It's the answer to a displaced hermit
crab's prayer and much like Uncle Hal himself."
The
books in this series are a watercolor tour-de-force—collect
them all!
Nautical
theme includes notes about knots and sea creatures.
"Brilliant
. . . a neat little parable about what makes a home and what
ties—or knots—a family together."— Booklist
ISBN 1-58246-030-2 |
