The Girl from the Sea by Molly Knox Ostertag

 
The Girl from the Sea by Molly Knox Ostertag
My Rating: ★★★★★

Morgan used to have a simple and happy life before her parents divorced. Now she’s miserable, her younger brother is short tempered, and she can’t wait to get off the little island her family lives on. What’s more pressing is that she lives with a big secret and is just counting the years until she can leave the island and be her true self out in the open. Until then, she’s just pretending to be movie teenager normal. Everything changes when a mysterious girl, Keltie, appears from nowhere and saves her from drowning. Keltie is the first person she feels comfortable revealing her secrets too, but it’s only a matter of time before everything comes out for all to see.

I found that this was such a sweet and relatable book with a touch of fantasy. We follow Morgan, who is doing everything she can to appear normal. She has many secrets, but the main one is that she’s gay, and she can’t share it with anyone. Even her closest friends have no idea, and she spends every day carefully making sure she fits the part so no one dares to glance at her longer than they should. I found her story extremely realistic. Between the pressure to fit in with what your friends like and not knowing what will happen if anyone finds out that you’re gay, it’s a relatable experience.

There’s a touch of fantasy here with Keltie being a selkie. I loved Keltie, and she comes in as the mysterious girl who does what she wants and dresses how she likes. While that’s stereotypical, I love that the way she’s brought in is different. She’s a selkie who 100% herself at all times because that’s just how it’s always been for her, and she doesn’t realize it’s not always that way in the human world.

While this book has many realistic things mixed with fantasy, it’s meant to be a heartwarming tale, so there isn’t a sad ending. I loved nearly all the characters, who each represent a different part of something we each face or have faced. On top of everything, the artwork is absolutely stunning. Most of the pages look like they could be beautiful posters. I’ve read one of Molly Knox Ostertag’s other books before and enjoyed it, so I’m excited to continue to see what else she publishes in the future.