Angela Ahn

Temporarily sidelined from her swim team by an earache, Julia won’t be kept down in this buoyant illustrated novel for ages 7 to 10 by acclaimed writer Angela Ahn.

As a member of the Vipers Swim Team, Julia Nam’s always in the pool. Mountainview Community Center is like her second home, not only because swimming at the aquatic center is her favorite thing in the world, but also because her parents run the center’s sushi café. Julia would much rather be in the pool than sitting behind the counter of Sushi on the Go! watching other people swim. 

She’s the youngest swimmer on the team, but definitely not the slowest. Julia can’t wait for Personal Best Day — the most important day for all of the swimmers. If their times are good enough, they can enter a big regional swim meet.

But then the worst thing happens. A sharp pain in Julia’s ear reveals an infection and she’s forbidden to swim for ten days. How can she get timed during Personal Best Day when she’s not allowed in the water?    

Julia is desperate to get back in the pool, even if it means having to go behind her parents’ backs in order to do so. But Julia’s solution lands her in a sticky situation, and it’s going to require the entire community center to come together to help her out of it!