Strong Like the Sea

the university and allowed me to visit with his excellent students. To S. Mailelauli’i Naki for teaching me, and sharing your love of both the Pidgin and Hawaiian language with me. To K. Dudoit, the best elementary tour guide ever. To Allison and Michelle Buchanan, who shared videos and photos of their many Hawaiian ocean dives and fielded my many diving-
related questions.
Huge thanks to my other Hawaiian readers who gave excellent feedback: Tetoa Tofa, Crystal Gancinia, Sudevika Kealani Okeahi, Trieste Mamo Pa’a’aina, Naine Marie Tai Hook, and Teradee Thornton. And also beta readers Nicky Stanton, Cammie Jensen, Tami Waldrup, and Krista Isaacson. Heartfelt thanks to Marcy and Corey Curr, who fed me grapes, jerky, and caffeine, and to Deanna Ketring, who helped me turn my drawings into Alexis’s secret code message for readers—you guys rule.
Sincere gratitude to Bryony Norburn for answering my queries and pointing me toward Mavis Batey and the other amazing women from WWII, and also for sharing details from her research and interviews with the late Mavis Batey.
To Debbie Frampton, Angela Busselberg, Don Carey, Jolene Perry, my writing group, and everyone else who encouraged, taught, corrected, and helped guide this story. I will always be grateful for your help.
With humble thanks,
Wendy

Wendy S. Swore and her family are farmers. She writes part-time, particularly in winter when her farming chores give her time to plant seeds in her imagination.
Her debut novel, A Monster Like Me, was the 2019 Gold Winner for Juvenile Fiction from Foreword Reviews. She is a member of SCBWI.


Table of Contents
Buried Treasure
Empty Squares
The Challenge
Grindz
When Geckos Come for Dinner
Symbols & Centipedes
Deep Water
Brain Freeze
Saisei
Invisible
Castle Tree
Tests of Tides
Friends and Fears
Water under the Foodland Bridge
Small Kine
Hidden Magic
A Promise Is for Keeps
Waterproof
Face to Face
No Mistake
Never Turn Your Back on the Ocean
Family Crest
The Cure
A Report and a Test
Rise
Into the Sea
Author’s Note
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Landmarks
Cover