Blue Skin of the Sea takes place on The Big Island of Hawaii during 1953-1966. The story focuses on a boy named Sonny Mendoza who lost his mother when he was born. His father is always gone because of his job being a fisherman. Sonny stays with his Aunty Pearl and his cousin Keo which he is somewhat of a bully. The stories in this book show Sonny grow up as he has to face several different challenges. This book is written by Graham Salisbury and is a historical fiction book because of its events. In the beginning of the book, Sonny, a seven year old boy, is faced with his first challenge. He couldn’t swim with his cousin Keo. He wanted to but he was afraid. His father comes down to see him and helps him to swim. Sonny’s father takes him on his boat out to a sand bar. After several tries Sonny gave up. He wasn’t as good of a swimmer as his father but his father talks to him about Sonny’s mother and how she would have taught him. Sonny’s father went back in and he tried to catch a stingray but it swam away. This of course scared Sonny even more. Even though he was afraid, he kept on trying and eventually he got it down. …show more content…
Sonny woke up to his Aunt Pearl telling him that a tsunami struck Hilo where his father is. Sonny couldn’t do anything. He doesn’t know if his dad is alive or not and that scares the whole family. One of Sonny’s uncles takes him and Keo to look for his dad. The drive there, Sonny is going through mental challenges and anxiety. They pull up to a gate and an officer. The officer tells them to turn around and they decide to sneak in. As they entered they try to find Sonny’s dad by going through the junk and finding bodies of other