Author: Tasha McAdam
Publisher: Orca Book
Genre: young adult, fiction, LGBTQ+, adventure, reluctant reader

Sixteen-year-old shy, socially awkward trans teen Bass reluctantly skips school and goes on a boat trip with his adventure-seeking girlfriend, Rosie. When a sudden storm smashes their boat on a rocky shore off a deserted island, Bass and Rosie struggle to make it to safety. Bruised and battling hypothermia, the pair have to seek shelter and work together to survive until they can be rescued. After a horrible night, Rosie, an experienced climber, decides to scale a steep cliff to find help. She falls and injures herself badly. Now Bass has to find the strength and courage to swim around a dangerous headland and make his way back to civilization before it’s too late.

Sink or Swim is a short novella that speaks to the emotional and psychological uncertainties involving LGBTQ+ relationships. The characters’ struggles in finding emotional “normalcy” tailors to a growing population who fear social liberation. Within this dynamic complexity is a very simple story that is easy to read for young teens. This quite simplistic plot and vocabulary allows for early readers to enjoy a basic setting with uncomplicated characters being developed. This gives us the sense that it can be quite relatable for many young teens who question their own ideas of gender sexuality.

Though the characters can seem relatable to some young readers, the setting can feel awkward at times. The plot may be potentially confusing for young readers who have a tough time imagining the overall scenario being portrayed, as well as the proposed resolution. Written in third person point of view, this short novella doesn’t quite capture the essence of teen drama, as the characterization remains at a surface level of emotional depth. As a teacher, I would not necessarily use this novella as a proper example of literature that targets the many facets of literary elements comprehension, rather save it as a “side read” purely for enjoyment purposes.

-Nicholas Rafael