How to Sail to Somewhere (Ashleigh Barton, Lothian)

In a coastal holiday town where ‘the land kisses the sea and the children grow up with salt in their hair’, Bea, a lonely only child who has never set foot in a boat, longs to visit a star-shaped island called Somewhere – an adventure dreamed up by her beloved Uncle Byron. Their blissful summers together were filled with laughter, play, imagination and hope, making Bea feel truly worthwhile. But now Byron is gone and he’s never coming back. With her parents working long hours and refusing to discuss their loss, Bea is left to navigate her grief alone. After unexpectedly connecting with Arabella – who, for her own reasons, also dreams of Somewhere – Bea begins to suspect Byron bequeathed her a set of clues, and suddenly neither the summer nor her heart feel quite so desolate. On Bea and Arabella’s quest for the island, they find something just as magical: a friendship. Ashleigh Barton’s middle-grade novel for readers aged 9–11 is emotionally and structurally satisfying, its evocative, elegiac tone balanced by tidy prose that keeps the story grounded. Bea’s emptiness is palpable and her tentative, deepening bond with Arabella is touching, while the mysteries of Byron’s scavenger trail will keep readers turning pages. How to Sail to Somewhere will please those looking for a cosy adventure that isn’t fantasy, slapstick or an endless series, and it also conjures vibes of older classics such as Lucy M Boston’s Green Knowe series.

Books+Publishing reviewer: Anica Boulanger-Mashberg is a freelance editor and writer, and a bookseller at the Hobart Bookshop. Books+Publishing is Australia’s number-one source of pre-publication book reviews.

Books+Publishing pre-publication reviews are supported by the Copyright Agency Cultural Fund.

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