The Girl from the Sea by Molly Knox Ostertag

 

With the end of July swiftly approaching, I decided to pick up a shorter book next so that I could meet my goal of reading two non-classic books from my shelves this month. I went with a young adult graphic novel that I picked up recently, The Girl from the Sea by Molly Knox Ostertag. This initially caught my eye at Barnes and Noble because of the beautiful artwork on the cover, but when I flipped through it and saw that it involved selkies and was LGBTQIA+ friendly, I knew I had to give it a try.

The plot of the novel follows a fifteen year old girl named Morgan who lives in a small island town with her mom and little brother. She's been feeling a bit emotional lately because her parents recently split up. her brother's been acting quite mean as a result of it, and, on top of all that, she's gay and feels too scared to come out to her friends and family. She has a plan though. She is determined to finish high school and then move to a college somewhere far away. She reasons that once she's away from everyone that knows her, she can finally be herself and have a bit of a fresh start. She just has to lay low for the next few years until she can make her escape. 

Her carefully crafted plan is turned on its head, however, when she slips and falls into the ocean one night and is rescued by a cute and mysterious girl named Keltie. Keltie appears to be some sort of mythical sea creature, so Morgan assumes that she's hallucinating her after her fall, but soon enough she learns the truth-- Keltie is real and she is a selkie. Both girls are attracted to each other and before long they start relationship. Morgan wants to keep it a secret because she hasn't come out as gay to anyone in her life yet, but Keltie, who doesn't really understand the prejudices of human society, is very hurt by this. She agrees to carry on in secret though, because the feelings between the pair are so strong.

Aside from the issues surrounding the girls' romance, there are other problems happening on the island. A new boat tour is due to start running soon, and the pollution from this threatens to destroy Keltie's ocean community. In order to try and fix it, she needs Morgan's help. Getting involved in the situation, however, conflicts with Morgan's desire to fit in and not draw attention to herself. She must decide if she wants to step up and fully put herself out there in front of everyone she knows, or continue to stay safe and anonymous in the background. 

This book was an absolute delight and I really loved every page of it. The story was a really interesting blend of social issues and fantasy, and the relationships between the characters felt authentic and genuine. Morgan's fears about her sexuality were very relatable and her romance with Keltie was sweet and pure. The themes of acceptance, honestly, and bravery were perfect for a young adult audience. The illustrations were beautiful as well. The color palette was bright and friendly and many of the pages made me pause to appreciate just how pretty they were. It really was fantastic.

One thing I especially liked about the messaging in the story was the idea that it's important to be yourself right now. Morgan continually made plans to be free and open eventually, but Keltie's influence pushes her to change her plans and embrace who she is right away. As someone that also puts off doing things until conditions are "perfect," I could relate to the wisdom of this idea that we shouldn't wait to seize our happiness. I think this is a great message for younger readers to hear, and one that is relatable to everyone, no matter what situation they are struggling with.

It was a really nice surprise to find another favorite with The Girl from the Sea. This was a sweet read with excellent themes and a lot of heart. I know I'm going to be recommending this book like crazy to my students next year. As far as young adult graphic novels go, you can't do much better than this.

Challenge Tally

Clear the Shelves 2021: 18/50 (keep)

Total Books Read in 2021: 37