Turn the Tide

4.7

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Author(s)

Elaine Dimopoulos

Publisher

Clarion Books

Genre(s)

Age Range

10+

Release Date

March 08, 2022

ISBN

978-0358538158

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Mimi has a plan for her seventh grade year: play piano in the Young Artists competition at Carnegie Hall with her best friend, Lee; enjoy a good old Massachusetts snow day or two; and work in her community garden plot with her dad. But all that changes when her family’s Greek restaurant falls on hard times.

The Laskarises’ relocation to Wilford Island, Florida, is a big key change for Mimi. Where does she fit in in this shell-covered paradise without Lee? Mimi is taken by the beauty of the island and alarmed by the plastic pollution she sees on the beaches.

Then her science teacher, Ms. Miller, shows her class a TED Talk by Melati and Isabel Wijsen. At ages twelve and ten, they lobbied to ban single-use plastic bags on their home island of Bali—and won. Their story strikes a chord for Mimi. She’s twelve.

Could a kid like her make such a big change in a place that she’s not yet sure feels like home? Can she manage to keep up with piano, her schoolwork, and activism? And does confident and flawless Carmen Alvarez-Hill really want to help her with the movement?

In this story of environmental activism, friendship, and self-discovery, Mimi figures out what’s truly important to her, and takes her place in the ranks of real-life youth activists like the Wijsen sisters, Greta Thunberg, and Isra Hirsi.

Editor review

1 review

Environmental Activism in Florida

April 06, 2022

Overall rating

4.7

Plot

5.0

Characters

5.0

Writing Style

4.0

Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)

N/A

Mimi (Demetra) and her family move from Massachusetts to a small coastal island because it's less expensive to run their Trident restaurant and they have family on Wilford Island, Florida. She is sad that she has to leave her best friend and fellow piano enthusiast, Lee, behind, but the two are able to talk frequently. The school is small, but Mimi makes a friend in super popular Carman. When their enthusiastic science teacher, Ms. Miller, teaches them about Melati and Isabel Wijsen and their Bye Bye Plastic Bags movement,, Mimi is enthralled and wants to start banning plastic bags from their island right away. She has a somewhat unlikely ally in Carman, whose father owns the local grocery store, and Anne and Henry Lowell, who run the local bookstore, Dusty Pages. Getting signatures on the petition, being interviewed by classmate Ethan for his Scaled Fish podcast, and worrying about her parents' restaurant opening makes it hard for Mimi to concentrate on her piano lessons with her new teacher Kyle and cut into her practice time. Carman seems super supportive when they are handing out free reusable bags at her father's store, or brainstorming flyers at home, but seems aloof at school. When Mimi doesn't invite her to the Trident's grand opening, Carman is hurt. Mimi worries that she won't be able to make much headway without her, and the Lowells have a health scare. Not only that, but Lee visits, and her piano playing has improved much more than Mimi's has. How will Mimi learn to balance her activism, piano, family and friends in her new community?

Good Points

This was a great depiction of a small island community, and I loved that Mimi's family was Greek and had a restaurant! It made me immediately hungry for a good, authentic horiatiki! There is a great balance between parental involvement and Mimi's own activities, and it's good to see that the parents have their own interests (but balance things a bit better than the parents in Pizza My Heart!). There are not a lot of books involving young people who play piano, so Mimi's interest in a future of competing is interesting. Of course, the best part is Mimi's determination to ban plastic bags from the island. Dimopoulos' has done a lot of research to outline what local governments can and can't do about this scourge, and gives great examples of places where bans have been effective. This is a topic dear to my heart, and with as many young environmental activists as there are in the world, you'd think we would hvae more middle grade books about topics of conservation. Anne and Henry are good examples of older people who have been and continue to be positively involved in their community, and the fact that the beach clean up crew is predominately older citizens is so true to life. All of the elements in this story were well balanced and entertaining to read. The notes and lists of resources at the end of the book will help readers who want to get involved. This is an essential purchase for middle school libraries, and I've already requested that my public library buy it!

Novels in verse are growing in popularity, with titles like Warga's Other Words for Home, Fipps' Starfish, and Alexander's The Crossover being frequent requests. Mimi's love of music and books gives a decent excuse for this format. Like most novels in verse, there isn't much in the way of meter, and it reads more like prose, but the writing style is certainly equal to or surpassing that of other novels in verse.

I would LOVE to see a whole sub genre of realistic fiction books where middle school students take up worthy environmental causes and set about trying to change the world. I'm always a fan of Kids Doing Things, and when the book also includes some very realistic and constructive friend drama like Mimi has with Carman, this makes for a compelling story I can't wait to get into readers' hands after they finish Rosenberg's One Small Hop, Hiaasen's Hoot, or Sachar's Fuzzy Mud.