THE LITTLE WAVE BY PIP HARRY
The Little Wave is the story of three kids, two from the beachside suburbs of Manly, Lottie and Noah, and one from the country, Jack. The school in the city is organising a trip for the country kids to come and visit the beach. Everyone is very excited and Lottie and Noah are thrown together to come up with a fund-raising idea.
Lottie is interested in studying insects and wants to be an entomologist. She lives with her dad who hasn’t been himself since her mum died. Their house is packed full of things he thinks are important and daily the junk takes up more and more room. It’s so bad that the neighbours yell at them. Noah is a fantastic surfer who is fearless when it comes to catching huge waves, but he has another side – his friend Harley bullies him and he can’t figure out why he doesn’t have the courage to confront him. Jack lives in a town that is far away from the coast and he has never seen the sea. He loves cricket and would rather skip school and hit a few balls with his cousin Alby. He does try to get to school, but something always comes up to distract him. Life is complicated at his place and his mum finds it hard to manage at home. Jack has to look after his little sister Kirra while he tries to do homework and is often left to cope alone.
Each of the children have problems they think are insurmountable. How will Lottie ever get her dad to stop hoarding? She misses her mum too and dearly wants things to go back to some kind of normal. Noah has to try and navigate his way in a friendship that has turned into the opposite. How can he stop Harley from being so mean all the time? Jack wants his family to be together and happy again but things keep on getting in the way. How can his mum get herself together and how can he help?
The teachers arrange for the kids to write to each other and introduce themselves. As time passes and the date gets nearer, they can’t wait to meet each other. Somehow talking about your problems in letters is so much easier than in person and the three new friends find that sometimes a problem shared can make it easier to solve.
Pip Harry’s book is written in verse form and each chapter is taken from the perspective of one of the characters. The language is free form and readers are pulled into their lives in a way that is somehow more empathetic. This is a great book about problems that children face every day, sometimes in silence. It will give the reader an insight into how others think and respond to their circumstances and let them know that they are not alone.
For Ages: 7-12 years
Number of Pages: 234 in paperback form.
Published: May 2019
Themes: Family, coping with adversity and friendships
Rating: 3.5/5
I wish: that I could surf like Noah