Sunrise Summer

by Matthew Swanson, Robbi Behr (Illustrator)

Overview

Sunrise Summer is a picture book by writer Matthew Swanson and illustrator Robbi Behr that celebrates self-confidence and empowerment, as a girl’s role changes in her family’s fishing expeditions.

When a girl and her family travel four thousand miles from home, it’s not your typical summer vacation. Everything is different on the Alaskan tundra—where the grizzly bears roam and the sockeye salmon swim—including the rules. A girl can do things she wouldn’t, and couldn’t, do at home.

She can wake up at midnight to work with her mom on a fishing crew. She can learn what it means to be an essential part of a team. She can become a braver, stronger, and ever-more capable version of herself. She can take her next big step.

She’s ready for her first real sunrise.


An Imprint Book

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250080585
Publisher:	Imprint
Publication date:	04/20/2021
Pages:	48
Sales rank:	1,079,237
Product dimensions:	8.40(w) x 11.10(h) x 0.20(d)
Lexile:	AD520L (what's this?)
Age Range:	4 - 7 Years

About the Author

When Matthew Swanson and Robbi Behr aren’t making books (Babies Ruin Everything; Everywhere, Wonder; and the Real McCoys series) and raising kids (four, so far, which is probably enough), they run a commercial salmon fishing operation on the Alaskan tundra, where Robbi has spent every summer since she was two years old.

Editorial Reviews

★ 02/22/2021

Carrying on an unconventional family tradition that began in illustrator Behr’s childhood, the married book creators (the Real McCoys series) and their kids travel 4,000 miles every summer to fish for sockeye salmon in a remote part of Alaska called Coffee Point. That adventure is chronicled here through the eyes and voice of a child who finally gets to join the family fishing crew. With irrepressible enthusiasm and an astute sense of detail, the child recounts the elaborate preparations (almost all supplies have to be brought in), the connection to nature and a close-knit community, and the grueling but exciting work itself, which is capped off with “cold spaghetti on the bluff while rain blows sideways up our noses.” The family’s camaraderie and collaboration are bountifully evident in Behr’s skillful balance of reportorial renderings, impressionistic landscapes, and explanatory vignettes (suiting up for the expedition, for example, takes nine layers, “even though it’s June”). “Some people never get to join the fishing crew,” the narrator says. “Those people are not me.” Readers may not be ready to sign on, but they’ll feel grateful for being afforded a spectacular front-row seat. Back matter discusses sockeye migration, the history of Native fishing practices, and salmon as a natural resource. Ages 4–7. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

[The narrator’s] eagerness and pride over being part of this work is palpable, and each moment feels important, locked in Behr’s artwork as an individual frame among many or as a sweeping two-page spread that captures its magnitude and beauty. The excellent back matter reveals that this story is about the creators’ own family, laying out their history as commercial salmon fishers, protections in place to prevent overfishing, and how some Alaska Natives continue to catch salmon according to their traditions. Eye-opening and awesome.” —Booklist, starred review

“With irrepressible enthusiasm and an astute sense of detail, the child recounts the elaborate preparations (almost all supplies have to be brought in), the connection to nature and a close-knit community, and the grueling but exciting work itself. . .Readers may not be ready to sign on, but they’ll feel grateful for being afforded a spectacular front-row seat.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review

“Paired with ebullient first-person prose, the illustrations immerse readers in the changing colors of the sky and waves throughout the thrilling event . . . An informative first-person story that combines family history with STEM concepts for a summer to remember.” —Kirkus Reviews

“Detailed and vibrant illustrations . . . This is an engaging tale about a summer vacation that is far from ordinary.” —School Library Journal

“The cast of family and fellow fishers evince a cheerful, busy-about-their-business camaraderie that recall the relaxed renderings of Matthew Cordell. Illustrated closing notes provide scads of background information on everything from Aleut fishing practices to salmon conservation regulations, methods of salmon fishing, and commercial processing (‘In an average summer, our family catches about ten thousand fish—not including the ones we eat!’). It’s a good guess many listeners would love to join them.” —Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

From the Publisher

06/01/2020

Gr 1–2—This husband-and-wife team tell a tale based on their family's experiences visiting Alaska. Each year their family of six flies 4,000 miles from their home to go salmon fishing. At last, the unnamed daughter is old enough to join the crew and not simply sit on the sidelines watching them do their work. It's a hard, messy business in windy, wet weather but the girl is excited to be part of the operation. Upon arrival, the family repairs their cabin, outhouse, and fishing nets in readiness for the season to get underway. Detailed and vibrant illustrations are crafted with pen, ink, gouache, and digital collage. The images come in a wide variety of sizes and shapes and show the family keeping busy until the radio announcer states: "The salmon are coming." Then the hard work really begins, and readers are shown an almost step-by-step sequence of events that are necessary for netting the sockeye salmon. Four pages at the end of the book give more information on the annual family trek. VERDICT This is engaging tale about a summer vacation that is far from ordinary.—Maryann H. Owen, Oak Creek P.L. WI

School Library Journal

2020-04-12
Summer has arrived and, with it, an annual—and unusual—family trip.

Four siblings and their parents travel 4,000 miles to arrive in Alaska. The young pale-skinned, brown-haired narrator is excited to finally be part of the fishing crew this summer. Before dawn, outfitted in rubber waders, special gloves, and warm wool hats, the crew goes out to stack nets and attach them to a raft headed out into the waves in the dark, cold morning. But the young protagonist isn’t strong enough to do it alone; luckily the crew is there to work together just as the sun comes up. Soon there are fish in the nets, and they have a catch for the day. Paired with ebullient first-person prose, the illustrations immerse readers in the changing colors of the sky and waves throughout the thrilling event. Extensive backmatter explains that illustrator Behr and author Swanson are actually the mom and dad in the story, and their children are the kids. Behr’s parents bought land in a place called Coffee Point and learned to fish the waters in search of adventure and family togetherness. The backmatter also includes information about Native peoples in the area and their traditional practices of fishing and living off the land.

An informative first-person story that combines family history with STEM concepts for a summer to remember. (Picture book. 4-7)

Kirkus Reviews