Sink or Swim

Sink or Swim: a Novel of Word War II
Steve Watkins
Scholastic, 2017 247 pages
Grades 4-8
Historical Fiction/Adventure

My selection for February's Bookworm Club (grades 5 & 6) is "Blind Date with a Book". I wrapped some of my favorite titles in plain brown paper and the members have to read a book "blind" and report to the group how their date went. They felt that I should also read a book "blind" and three members managed to come up with titles that I have not yet read. This is the first assigned title and deserves a shout-out to Nikhil for the recommendation.

Twelve-year-old Colton is out fishing with his older brother, Danny, off the coast of North Caroline when German U-boats capsize their small craft and they must fight for their lives. Danny lands in a coma and Colton decides to "borrow" his admittance papers to the US Navy in order to earn the struggling family some much needed money. Big for his age, Colton takes Danny's identity and struggles through basic training and then further training to work on a patrol craft designed to detect U-boats. Through the process he learns to stand on his own two feet, fight fear, and contribute to the war effort, all while making a few good friends. Colton and his team accompany supplies ships up and down the east coast of the US, keeping the German's away and braving foul weather. Eventually, they are assigned to cross the Atlantic, where real trouble starts. An attack gone wrong, Colton and his crew suffer devastating losses and the destruction of their ship. Wounded and disheartened, he must survive on a lifeboat, waiting rescue-hopefully from the right side!

Based on actual events, Watkins fictionalizes the story of a real boy who enlisted in the Navy at twelve and served in the war until his mother spotted him on a newsreel and brought him home. Colton is used as a vehicle to bring the war closer to young readers and his first person narration makes us feel as if we are really there. Most books about WWII for young people focus on the holocaust or the homefront, so it is refreshing to see the actual war portrayed in a realistic, yet approachable way.  Young readers will devour the adventurous story, yet also pick up facts about the historic war. I have heard of U-boats, but didn't really know what they did. I love walking away from a children's book having gained some knowledge, while also being entertained. This is a great choice for reluctant readers, especially for those dreaded historical fiction assignments, and will be an especially easy sell to boys. Back-matter includes a glossary of terms and an author's note putting the story into historical perspective. It is interesting to see that the country's discriminatory stereotyping of people from New Jersey has moved from Broadway and television to children's literature. One of the sailors from New Jersey with a smart mouth is feared to also sport a "New Jersey Temper", although he utters my favorite line: "Ain't nobody soft that's from New Jersey." Amen!