Sink or Swim by Veronica Agarwal (review)

Reviewed by: Sink or Swim by Veronica Agarwal Meg Cornell Agarwal, Veronica Sink or Swim; by Veronica Agarwal and Lee Dufrey-Lavoie. Random House Graphic, 2024 320p Trade ed. ISBN 9780593125519 22. 99 Paper ed. ISBN 9781984897022 14. 99 E-book ed. ISBN 9781984897046 8. 99 Reviewed from digital galleys R Gr. 5-8 Since breaking his arm and taking a season off the swim team, Ty hasn't felt as confident in his swimming abilities—or in how his body looks. His arm has healed but his relationships are breaking after weeks of ghosting his friends, and now he's thrown into the deep end at summer camp, where best friend/teammate Max explosively confronts him about his avoidance. Ty tries to dodge Max and the water, but Silver Falls camp has nothing but team-building activities, including swimming competitions. As he struggles to repair things with Max and compete in the swim contest, Ty finds it hard not to be swept up in the riptide of his emotions: he's unable to look in the mirror, throwing away his food, and leaving scratches along his stomach. Agarwal's (Just Roll with It, BCCB 10/21) style remains charming and inclusive, with meme-ready expressions and energetic panel composition that lift the overall tone and empathetically convey Ty's emotional states. Apt visual metaphors, like tides swelling around Ty's body or waves crashing over his furrowed brows, give true depth to this portrait of a child struggling against the invisible but overwhelming crush of negative self-talk and anxiety. Dufrey-Lavoie well-represents the busy, contained world of a middle-grade camp, as Ty makes shy contact with a golden-stag-beetle-hunting bunkmate and some D&D-playing campers—inciting more jealous friendship drama from Max (shading into romantic drama). The camp is populated with down-to-earth adults to confide in, who may not have all the answers but are willing to do the legwork and who reinforce the importance of reaching for a life raft. Librarians hoping to fill out their middle-grade camp collections with a uniquely tender LGBTQIA+ story for their readers to dive into this summer should look no further. End Page 349 Copyright © 2024 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois