JUNIUS LEAK AND THE SPIRALING VORTEX OF DOOM

A lake recounts its historical connections to the family of a boy who’s been “exiled to a strange, watery land.”

“I am a lake, so let me be clear,” insists Lake Peigneur, an ancient body of water deep in Louisiana’s Mississippi Delta. But for Junius Leak, who’s nearly 13 in the summer of 1980, things are far from clear. From the lake’s perspective, the reason for the return of the latest in a long line of Junius Leaks to his birthplace is obvious, with origins in 1820, involving pirates and the first infant Junius. While his parents attend a retreat to work on their marriage, the current Junius, who reads white, faces a surprise trip to Delcambre, Louisiana, to stay with a maternal uncle he’d never heard of. Despite upsides, like new friends, Aunt Boudreaux (a sassy and occasionally problematic cat), and firsthand experiences with his special interest (bodies of water), the move has downsides, too, like how terrifying such bodies of water can be up close and the frustrating lack of communication around his biggest family-related questions. Although the term was coined in the mid-1990s, Junius’ mom is a self-described “highly sensitive person”; she tells her son, “June Bug…us HSPs have to stick together,” and the book includes helpful coping mechanisms. This expansive, multilayered tale combines a pirate treasure mystery, environmental science and activism, Cajun cultural influences, and deep acceptance of and compassion for neurodivergence.

An immersive and grounded story of becoming and self-discovery.