SUNRISE SUMMER

Summer has arrived and, with it, an annual—and unusual—family trip.

Four siblings and their parents travel 4,000 miles to arrive in Alaska. The young pale-skinned, brown-haired narrator is excited to finally be part of the fishing crew this summer. Before dawn, outfitted in rubber waders, special gloves, and warm wool hats, the crew goes out to stack nets and attach them to a raft headed out into the waves in the dark, cold morning. But the young protagonist isn’t strong enough to do it alone; luckily the crew is there to work together just as the sun comes up. Soon there are fish in the nets, and they have a catch for the day. Paired with ebullient first-person prose, the illustrations immerse readers in the changing colors of the sky and waves throughout the thrilling event. Extensive backmatter explains that illustrator Behr and author Swanson are actually the mom and dad in the story, and their children are the kids. Behr’s parents bought land in a place called Coffee Point and learned to fish the waters in search of adventure and family togetherness. The backmatter also includes information about Native peoples in the area and their traditional practices of fishing and living off the land.

An informative first-person story that combines family history with STEM concepts for a summer to remember.