Tully's memories are filled with swimming. For as long as she can remember, she has been in the water. Competitive swimming began when she was very young because having her mother coach the team meant she was included and expected to do well. It was in her blood.
Now Tully is trying to use swimming to get her mother's attention so hopefully she returns from wherever she ran off to. Depression has plagued her mother, but swimming and exercise seemed to help. When she stopped seeing her therapist and stopped taking her medication, Tully knew it was only a matter of time until everything collapsed.
Tully has committed to completing the "Godfather" swim across Lake Tahoe. She would be the youngest to accomplish the feat. This has to get her mother's attention. With her best friend Arch as her support team, Tully starts the swim. She is supposed to have an adult with her, but she knows her father would tell her no. She has prepped and researched for the swim and is sure she can make it.
When a storm threatens to put an end to the swim, Tully refuses to listen to Arch when he tells her it's time to quit. He alerts her father and the Coast Guard. Now Tully must decide if you should defy them all and keep swimming. This has become the most important thing in her life, and she simply can't fail.
DEEP WATER, a novel in verse by Jamie Sumner, focuses on love, determination, courage, and mental health. Sumner deftly captures the need to be seen and recognized, and the disappointment when it's clear it may not happen.
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