Book Review

David C. Hall
EDCI 4120/5120
Salisbury, G. (2007). Lord of the deep. New York: Houghton Mifflin Company.
Grade Levels: 6-8
Category: Realistic fiction
Read-Alouds: pp. 10-16 (Part 2: Chapters 2 and 3); 45-69(Part 2: Chapters 5 and 6); 109-119 (Part 2: Chapter 13); 130-135 (Part 2: Chapter 16); 162-182 (Part 3: Chapters 5 and 6)
Summary: Mikey Donavan is thirteen years old, and has just signed on as a deckhand on the Crystal- C with his stepdad, Bill, who Mikey thinks is the best charter boat skipper in the Hawaiian Islands. Bill and Mikey have taken on a tough set of clients in Ernie and Cal, two brothers who have chartered the Crystal-C for three days of deep sea fishing; the two men expect a lot out of the trip. Cal has brought along his daughter, Alison, who is a couple years older the Mikey. The fishing on the second day results in a situation that raises questions about personal integrity and honesty, and creates friction between the crew of the Crystal-C and their clients when a record fish is caught.
Themes: This simple and straight-forward young adult novel combines the excitement of an adventure story about charter boat deep sea fishing with themes focusing on the relationship between Mikey and the stepdad he admires, and the tension caused by their rude and arrogant clients, Cal and Ernie. When Cal and Ernie blackmail Bill into covering for them about the record-breaking mahimahi caught during the day’s charter, Mikey’s belief in Bill is shaken, and the two of them have to work to repair the damage to their relationship.
Discussion Questions:
At age thirteen, Mikey has taken on the responsibilities of an adult by serving as the sole deckhand on his stepfather Bill’s charter boat, the Crystal-C. When they hook the big marlin and Mikey mishandles the wheel and fouls the line, he loses the big fish for Bill’s two demanding clients. What was your impression of the way Bill handled the situation?
As the Crystal-C comes into port with the record-breaking mahimahi, Cal and Ernie put pressure on Bill to validate Ernie’s catch as official, even though Ernie didn’t strike the fish himself. The two men threaten to slander Bill, and then they offer to bribe him to go along with their plan. What did you think of Mikey’s reaction to the way Bill handled (or mis-handled) this touchy situation? Did you agree with Mikey’s take on the situation? What do you think would have happened if Bill had refused to go along with them?

At the end of Lord of the Deeep, Mikey and Bill discuss the final day of the charter with Ernie and Cal, and Mikey decides to jump overboard and swim for shore. What does this decision, and Bill’s tacit acceptance of Mikey’s decision, say about the future of their relationship?
Reader Response: Lord of the Deep is an adventure story encased in realistic fiction; I liked the way the author used a simple, straight-forward adventure story of charter boat fishing as a platform for addressing the complicated issue of a young boy’s relationship with his step father and the not-so-black-and-white world of adulthood, where a businessman (Bill) has to weigh the consequences of his actions and decisions, and where compromise is sometimes necessary to protect the things that really matter—things like family.
The character of Mikey—ethnically a mix of Filipino, French, Polynesian and the Caucasian supplied by the father who abandoned him, represents the kind of ethnically-diverse young adult character that will become more and more common as our society becomes less conscious of outdated concepts of how our culture defines, and focuses on, ethnocentricity. The book satisfies young adult readers with a highly detailed story about what it is like to work a charter deep sea fishing boat, while still addressing important issues about growing up during the highly impressionable early teenage years.

Mikey is 13 and thrilled to be given a chance to work Bill's deep sea fishing charter boat. Mikey is the youngest deckhand in the harbor and does not want to let Bill down.

Mikey learns not only about fishing, but about the tough and complex decisions you must make in your life.

Other books to try: Choosing up Sides

Other books by this author: Under a Blood Red sky, Island Boyz ( )