Description
Description
When a gust of wind sweeps inflatable pool toy Finn out to sea, he's in for an ocean of trouble in this summertime picture book adventure from acclaimed author-illustrator Leanne Hatch. Unlike most orcas, Finn swims in a heated pool and is as light as air. His life as a floating pool toy can be fun in the sun--after all, summer is the best!--but it can also be noisy and exhausting. He's jumped on! Kicked! Splashed! Sometimes he wonders what's on the other side of the backyard fence... and when a gust of wind comes along, blowing him up in the air, it's time for HIS summer adventure. Finn soars as high as an airplane, swims with his new orca friends in the strange new pool we call the ocean, and gets mixed up with some carnival balloons. Then another gust of wind blows him into a tree and POP he loses his air. Luckily, the family that finds him recognizes him and is able to patch him up and take him back where he belongs--home. A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection
About the Author
About the Author
Leanne Hatch is the author and illustrator of Unraveled, a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection, and The Brand-New, Never-Used Perfect Crayons, a Bank Street Best Book of the Year. Her illustration portfolios have won an SCBWI Portfolio Showcase Award Grand Prize and two Honors. She was also the winner of the SCBWI Narrative Art Award and 1st Place Portfolio Award at the SCBWI Western Washington Conference. Leanne lives in Kirkland, Washington. Visit her at leannehatch.com and on Instagram.
Critical Reviews
Critical Reviews
This imagination-fueled adventure conveys a buoyant sense of possibility.
--Publishers Weekly The inner life of an inanimate childhood playmate is always cause for interest, and this bouncy narrative touches on themes of friends, family, and home--and being careful what you wish for--all set within a reassuring framework. . . . Flying orcas ahead! A tale rich in love, loss, and windborne pool floaties.
--Kirkus Reviews Themes of belonging and contentment emerge naturally through tender, understated storytelling. The illustrations, created digitally using hand-painted textures, have a soft, hand-drawn appearance. Expressive artwork conveys movement beautifully, with splashing water and swirling wind reinforcing both the excitement of flight and the calm of return.
--Booklist
--Publishers Weekly The inner life of an inanimate childhood playmate is always cause for interest, and this bouncy narrative touches on themes of friends, family, and home--and being careful what you wish for--all set within a reassuring framework. . . . Flying orcas ahead! A tale rich in love, loss, and windborne pool floaties.
--Kirkus Reviews Themes of belonging and contentment emerge naturally through tender, understated storytelling. The illustrations, created digitally using hand-painted textures, have a soft, hand-drawn appearance. Expressive artwork conveys movement beautifully, with splashing water and swirling wind reinforcing both the excitement of flight and the calm of return.
--Booklist
Publishing Information
Publishing Information
Publisher:
Holiday House
Pub date:
2026-05-12
Length:
40 pages
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