Hazel Bly and the Deep Blue Sea

Starred review from March 29, 2021
Packing an emotional punch, this delicately woven novel by Blake (The Mighty Heart of Sunny St. James) features clearly wrought characters who capture the heart. Twelve-year-old Hazel Bly, her mother Evie, and five-year-old sister Peach have moved eight times in the last two years, following the death of the girls’ Mum. Wracked with guilt and physically scarred from the event that took Mum’s life, Hazel retreats into trying to keep the family safe. Newly arrived in Rose Harbor, Me., for the summer, she finds herself unwilling to face the ocean, once her most treasured escape. After running into neighbor Lemon, also 12, and Lemon’s mother, Claire (Evie’s childhood friend, it happens), Hazel learns that she’s the spitting image of Rosemary Lee, a turn-of-the-century captain’s daughter, rumored to have become a mermaid, on whom the seaside town’s lore is based. Grieving, prickly Hazel must navigate making friends—including with Kiko, who’s of Japanese ancestry, and Jules, who’s white and nonbinary—and address her trauma. Slowly unfurling her story, which is resonant with messages about healing, the author invites readers into an exploration of grief, memory, and familial relationships while employing layered metaphors about oceanic fact and fiction. Ages 8–12. Agent: Rebecca Podos, Rees Literary.

April 15, 2021
Grades 4-7 In the two years since the accident that claimed Mum's life and left Hazel with facial scars, the 12 year old's world has shrunk, fitting tightly around her duty to keep her little sister safe and trying not to remind Mama of all they lost. But when they move to a small beach town and Mama is reunited with her first love, things begin to change for their family, forcing Hazel to deal with feelings she'd long been avoiding. This latest from Blake (The Mighty Heart of Sunny St. James, 2019) is a moving story of grief and guilt. Though the bulk of the story follows Hazel trying to make sense of her emotions alone, the novel addresses the help she needs to deal with her possible PTSD. While the book does feature intense moments of sadness, there are plenty of lighter moments around things like her new friend's love of all things mermaid. This novel deals with loss in a way that feels accessible but never condescending.

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