Sink or Swim
Twelve-year-old Ty is captain of the swim team, but he missed the last swim season because of a broken arm. That’s not all he missed: he hasn’t seen his best friends Max and Heather in months. They keep reaching out, but Ty doesn’t know how to talk to them now, because he’s feeling so many things he can’t explain. He’s scared to get back in the water, but doesn’t know who he is if not a champion swimmer. He hates that he gained weight while recovering. He gets overwhelmed frequently in social situations. Oh, and he secretly has a crush on Max.
So Ty has been hiding out at home, but that ends when he, Max, and Heather start summer camp. Camp means new friends and cool activities . . . and a looming swim competition that Ty can’t even think about. He’s struggling to rebuild his friendship with Max after avoiding him for so long. Meanwhile, he finds his own body disgusting and has started skipping meals. His friends and well-meaning camp counselors care about him, but they don’t understand what he’s going through. For Ty to get better – and to fix things with Max – he’s going to have to finally let other people in and ask for help.
This book, based on experiences of author Lee Durfey-Lavoie, touches on several serious issues without ever naming or diagnosing anything. Ty suffers from what might be panic attacks, depicted as water rising around him or waves crashing over him. He feels helpless and hopeless, and sometimes does things like go to bed super early to avoid doing activities and being around people. Ty hates his heavier body, often can’t bring himself to eat, and at one point digs his nails into his own stomach hard enough to leave marks that others notice. He also worries what others might think if they discover he is gay.
Ty starts asking for help fairly early, but the sympathetic camp counselors he talks to aren’t sure how to support him. Things get better as he makes new friends and starts to enjoy some new activities, letting him see himself as something other than a once-great, now-failed swimmer. Eventually, he stands up to his own cruel internal voice and finally shares his struggles with the person he has been shutting out for so long: Max.
The cast is diverse, including characters of various races as well as gay and trans characters. They have a variety of passionate interests, from bug catching to tabletop roleplaying games. Misunderstandings and hurt feelings cause Ty and Max to keep hurting each other, and the camp counselors are a little out of their depth with Ty’s problems, but the characters are all kind, supportive, and doing their best.
The art is colorful and active, with a cartoony style. The characters mostly keep the same outfits throughout the book, which is helpful for distinguishing between Heather and Max, siblings who otherwise look similar. The art is simple and clean, without much fine detail except in scenes that require it, like when Ty and his friends are designing and building a canoe.
Some readers may wonder about the fact that therapy is never suggested or mentioned, given the seriousness of Ty’s struggles. Because the book ends while he is still at summer camp, we also never get to find out whether he tells his parents what has been happening with him, or what they do next. Ty’s situation has improved by the end of the book, but one hopes this is only the beginning of his healing.
This is a hopeful book, with a protagonist who is struggling but who takes some good steps, like telling the adults in charge about his problems. The summer camp makes a fun backdrop, with lots of new friends and interesting activities. It may appeal to fans of Upstaged by Robin Easter, another story in which a queer kid goes to summer camp with their crush and has difficulty connecting. Fans of middle grade realistic fiction will enjoy this if they don’t mind some heavier subject matter than typical tween awkwardness.
Sink or Swim
By Lee Durfey-Lavoie
Art by Veronica Agarwal
Penguin Random House Graphic, 2024
ISBN: 9780593125519
Publisher Age Rating: 8-12
NFNT Age Recommendation: Middle Grade (7-11), Tween (10-13)
Creator Representation:Â Indian American, Italian-American,
Character Representation: Gay, Ambiguous Mental Illness, Eating Disorder
