LitPick Review
In Loon Cove Summer by Donna Galanti, Sarah Richardson, a young girl, is starting the summer holiday without her mother. After her mother's death, she had to live with her father, who was working far away, and with her uncle JuJu. Following the death of her mother and the departure of her best friend Gemmi, who traveled for the holiday, Sarah was left to spend the summer alone. But there was a problem. Living in the Maine lakeside campground, Sarah was concerned about the recent loss of loons at the lake. When she wrote to the university, a loon expert, Maggie, was sent to her. That was when Sarah's adventures started. Determined to keep the loons safe, Sarah goes on a journey to the Appalachian Trail in hope of restoring balance to the loon population and her life after her mother's death.
Opinion:
Loon Cove Summer is a middle grade book with themes such as coming-of-age, which comes from following Sarah's personal growth. In the book, she transitioned from being a grieving young girl to becoming a mature teenager. She took on some responsibilities like helping her uncle out on the campground and become friends with Maggie and her nephew Theo.
Another aspect that was clearly emphasized was the environmental stewardship. This part was clearly woven into the plot as sub-themes such as protecting the loons and the connection between nature and Sarah's emotional healing.
When it comes to the characters, I would like to focus on Sarah, who was the main character of the story. I see Sarah as a hardworking heroine, which is due to her struggle to save the loons from danger. I also admire her determination to help these creatures. Another thing I noticed was how she tried to be brave by thinking she could deal with her mother's death when in fact she felt fragile and sad. Sarah was torn apart by her mother's death and was overwhelmed with guilt. Lastly, Sarah was quite a stubborn character, and most times she struggled to let her thoughts and feelings out. However, these flaws shaped her and made her relatable to readers.
Finally, the book was written in a clear and descriptive way. I was able to picture the beautiful Maine lake with boats moving across it, and I could even picture the loons that were mentioned. The author made use of direct language (English) that readers, especially young ones, can understand. The chapters are not too long, and the dialogue, especially the phone conversations were realistic; I understood the conversations, and it felt like I was really there with them.
Another thing I appreciated about the book was how it had some educational elements, such as facts about loons and nature, which were listed out by Sarah in her book. Elements such as these were quite informative.
Overall, I would say the book was entertaining, educational, and was filled with emotions such as Sarah recalling memories of her mother. However, these emotions did not overpower the story. I would recommend this book to young readers from the ages of 8 to 12 years and to anyone who enjoys realistic fiction with a love for nature and emotional depth.
