The Islanders by Mary Alice Monroe

Release: June 15th, 2021
Format: Ebook
Publisher: Aladdin
Source: Suzyapproved Book Tours
Find it at Goodreads, Amazon, Kindle, Audible, B&N.

From New York Times, bestselling author Mary Alice Monroe comes a beautiful story of friendship, loss, and the healing power of nature in her first book for middle-grade readers.

Suddenly, Eleven-year-old Jake’s life has just turned upside-down. And his mother is going to leave him to take care of his injured father in Afghanistan. That means Jake’s spending the summer on tiny Dewees Island with his grandmother. As a matter of fact, the island is a nature sanctuary, with no cars or paved roads, no stores or restaurants. To make matters worse, Jake’s grandmother doesn’t believe in cable or the internet. This means Jake has no cell phone, no video games, and no friends. In reality, this is going to be the worst summer ever!

He’s barely on the island before he befriends two other kids, Macon, another “summer kid,” and Lovie, who knows it all who lives there and shows both Jake and Macon the ropes of life on the island. All three are struggling with their own family issues and they quickly bond, going on adventures all over Dewees Island. Until one misadventure on an abandoned boat leads to community service. As a result, their punishment is Mandatory duty on the Island Turtle Team. In short, the kids must do a daily dawn patrol of the beach on the hunt for loggerhead sea turtle tracks. When coyotes threaten a turtle nest, the three friends must find a way to protect it. In essence, can they save the turtle nest from predators? Overall, can Jake’s growing love for the island and its inhabitants help to heal his father?

About the Author:

Mary Alice Monroe is the New York Times bestselling author of twenty-seven books, including her newest novel, The Summer of Lost and Found, and her first, middle-grade book, The Islanders. In fact, Monroe’s books have been published worldwide. Besides, she’s earned numerous accolades and awards, including induction into the South Carolina Academy of Authors’ Hall of Fame; the Southwest Florida Author of Distinction Award; the South Carolina Award for Literary Excellence; the RT Lifetime Achievement Award; the International Book Award for Green Fiction; and the Southern Book Prize for Fiction. Her bestselling novel The Beach House is also a Hallmark Hall of Fame movie.In addition, shee is the co-founder of the hit web show and podcast Friends & Fiction. An active conservationist, she lives in the Lowcountry of South Carolina. Visit her at MaryAliceMonroe.com and Facebook.com/MaryAliceMonroe.

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Goodreads

The Islanders Review:

There are so many aspects that made me admire the book. Firstly, I loved all the Nature facts that the author provides, making you enthusiastic about becoming a naturalist. In addition, there were new facts to me, such as the line of wrack, loggerhead tracks, fiddler crabs, egret, Carolina parakeet, and so much more! On a side note, as a person who loves journaling, I loved how the author encourages readers to journal via Jake’s entries. Similarly, the illustrations are also cute and add nicely to the book.

Secondly, the author has a beautiful style of writing that made me reminisce about the old Enid Blyton adventure novels I read growing up. As the reader, you go along with Jake, start to appreciate the Island life, and have a sense of adventure without modern technology. The author also wrote the plot soothingly, where you enjoy the Islanders’ experience as they monitor the hatching of the turtle eggs (amongst many other adventures).

Thirdly, the characters are all adorable! I loved their friendship. They all face their challenges, and it was beautiful to see how they overcome their fears over the summer on Dewees Island. Macon is engaging with all the facts he provides, and I liked Lovie’s father’s drama. Moreover, Jake has a beautiful relationship with Honey. They both help each other move forward and think positively rather than worry about their family members.

Overall, I loved everything about “The Islanders,” and I hope the author makes many more sequels with these characters. I highly recommend this book to anyone wanted to read an excellent adventure novel with lots of exciting Nature facts with a charming friendship storyline.