Doretta Groenendyk

Nova Scotian mother-daughter team Izra Fitch and Doretta Groenendyk join forces in this charming picture-book featuring an unusual autumn custom in their part of the world. Namely, the carving of jack-o-lanterns that are then cast out to sea by children dressed up in Halloween costumes. Spinning, as they head off into the waters, these glowing gourds carry light out into the vast darkness...

Although Groenendyk is an established picture-book creator, Spin to Sea is apparently really the brain-child of her (then) fifteen-year-old daughter, Izra, who created all of the artwork, and wrote the story in collaboration with her mother. The rhyming text sometimes works very well, and sometimes stumbles, revealing that Fitch has potential, but perhaps needs a little polishing. The artwork is charming, playing with color and light in appealing ways. In the end, what interested me the most about this book was the custom being depicted, and I would have loved something more - perhaps an afterword? - about how the residents of Annapolis Valley practice it. I tried googling, but the closest I came was a 'Pumpkin People' festival in Kentville. Leaving that aside, I'd recommend this one to picture-book readers looking for unusual autumn and/or Halloween stories (note, no specific mention of the holiday is made), as well as stories set in the Canadian maritimes.… (meer)