saralynnburnett's review against another edition
3.0
I wasn't really looking forward to this one. I had been putting off reading it (I have to teach it this upcoming year) to the point where it is now late back to the library, but at least until about page 134 (when the story ‘The Boy in the Shadow’ started) I loved it! But then it all got a bit too morose for me.
I’m not a big fan of short stories (with the exception of Anthony Doerr’s collection called ‘The Shell Collector’ – which is a work of art) because as soon as I start to like a character or feel something it ends. Blue Skin of the Sea alleviated that by following Sonny Mandoza from the age of about 6 until he graduates high school and it is set right here in Hawaii, during the 1950s/1960s so that was quite fun. The author’s sense of place is spot on.
To superficially summarize each story:
1.Deep Water – learning how to swim
2. Malanamekahuluohemanu – does Aunty Pearl weight more than the pig? (this one was hilarious)
3. The Old Man – a crew comes to film Hemingway’s Old Man and the Sea
4. The Year of the Black Widows – terrorizing teachers and a new ‘tough’ kid from California
5. Get Mister Red a Beer – helping out on a charter boat for tourists. Interesting themes of tourism/economics v. reef sustainability
6. You Would Cry to See Waiakea Town – tsunami strikes
7. Uncharted Waters – kissing and exploring lava tubes
8. The Boy in the Shadow – friend from school is abused and beaten by his father
9. Blue Skin of the Sea – blowing holes in sharks with explosives (I rooted for the shark in this one)
10. Rudy’s Girl – rescuing a girl you love from an abusive relationship and getting beat up in the process
11. Islanders – coming to terms with losing your parents
So – point is, you can see how this collection takes a sharp turn towards the dark. I’m eager to see how my students react to these stories and to get their take on some of the more ‘grown up’ themes.
I’m not a big fan of short stories (with the exception of Anthony Doerr’s collection called ‘The Shell Collector’ – which is a work of art) because as soon as I start to like a character or feel something it ends. Blue Skin of the Sea alleviated that by following Sonny Mandoza from the age of about 6 until he graduates high school and it is set right here in Hawaii, during the 1950s/1960s so that was quite fun. The author’s sense of place is spot on.
To superficially summarize each story:
1.Deep Water – learning how to swim
2. Malanamekahuluohemanu – does Aunty Pearl weight more than the pig? (this one was hilarious)
3. The Old Man – a crew comes to film Hemingway’s Old Man and the Sea
4. The Year of the Black Widows – terrorizing teachers and a new ‘tough’ kid from California
5. Get Mister Red a Beer – helping out on a charter boat for tourists. Interesting themes of tourism/economics v. reef sustainability
6. You Would Cry to See Waiakea Town – tsunami strikes
7. Uncharted Waters – kissing and exploring lava tubes
8. The Boy in the Shadow – friend from school is abused and beaten by his father
9. Blue Skin of the Sea – blowing holes in sharks with explosives (I rooted for the shark in this one)
10. Rudy’s Girl – rescuing a girl you love from an abusive relationship and getting beat up in the process
11. Islanders – coming to terms with losing your parents
So – point is, you can see how this collection takes a sharp turn towards the dark. I’m eager to see how my students react to these stories and to get their take on some of the more ‘grown up’ themes.
saralynnburnett's review against another edition
3.0
I wasn't really looking forward to this one. I had been putting off reading it (I have to teach it this upcoming year) to the point where it is now late back to the library, but at least until about page 134 (when the story ‘The Boy in the Shadow’ started) I loved it! But then it all got a bit too morose for me.
I’m not a big fan of short stories (with the exception of Anthony Doerr’s collection called ‘The Shell Collector’ – which is a work of art) because as soon as I start to like a character or feel something it ends. Blue Skin of the Sea alleviated that by following Sonny Mandoza from the age of about 6 until he graduates high school and it is set right here in Hawaii, during the 1950s/1960s so that was quite fun. The author’s sense of place is spot on.
To superficially summarize each story:
1.Deep Water – learning how to swim
2. Malanamekahuluohemanu – does Aunty Pearl weight more than the pig? (this one was hilarious)
3. The Old Man – a crew comes to film Hemingway’s Old Man and the Sea
4. The Year of the Black Widows – terrorizing teachers and a new ‘tough’ kid from California
5. Get Mister Red a Beer – helping out on a charter boat for tourists. Interesting themes of tourism/economics v. reef sustainability
6. You Would Cry to See Waiakea Town – tsunami strikes
7. Uncharted Waters – kissing and exploring lava tubes
8. The Boy in the Shadow – friend from school is abused and beaten by his father
9. Blue Skin of the Sea – blowing holes in sharks with explosives (I rooted for the shark in this one)
10. Rudy’s Girl – rescuing a girl you love from an abusive relationship and getting beat up in the process
11. Islanders – coming to terms with losing your parents
So – point is, you can see how this collection takes a sharp turn towards the dark. I’m eager to see how my students react to these stories and to get their take on some of the more ‘grown up’ themes.
I’m not a big fan of short stories (with the exception of Anthony Doerr’s collection called ‘The Shell Collector’ – which is a work of art) because as soon as I start to like a character or feel something it ends. Blue Skin of the Sea alleviated that by following Sonny Mandoza from the age of about 6 until he graduates high school and it is set right here in Hawaii, during the 1950s/1960s so that was quite fun. The author’s sense of place is spot on.
To superficially summarize each story:
1.Deep Water – learning how to swim
2. Malanamekahuluohemanu – does Aunty Pearl weight more than the pig? (this one was hilarious)
3. The Old Man – a crew comes to film Hemingway’s Old Man and the Sea
4. The Year of the Black Widows – terrorizing teachers and a new ‘tough’ kid from California
5. Get Mister Red a Beer – helping out on a charter boat for tourists. Interesting themes of tourism/economics v. reef sustainability
6. You Would Cry to See Waiakea Town – tsunami strikes
7. Uncharted Waters – kissing and exploring lava tubes
8. The Boy in the Shadow – friend from school is abused and beaten by his father
9. Blue Skin of the Sea – blowing holes in sharks with explosives (I rooted for the shark in this one)
10. Rudy’s Girl – rescuing a girl you love from an abusive relationship and getting beat up in the process
11. Islanders – coming to terms with losing your parents
So – point is, you can see how this collection takes a sharp turn towards the dark. I’m eager to see how my students react to these stories and to get their take on some of the more ‘grown up’ themes.
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