The Seashore Book: Bob and Betty's Summer with Captain Hawes

Summer has a sound, and for Bob and Betty, it arrives on the salt wind of Captain Ben Hawes' weathered boat. Set along the rugged coast of a century ago, this gentle illustrated adventure follows two siblings as they trade city streets for tidal pools, learning the sea not from books but from hands pressed into damp sand and fingers curled around rope. Captain Hawes, with his endless supply of sailor's tales, introduces them to Patsey, a local boy who knows where the clams hide and which tides promise the best fishing. Together, the children witness a ship launch, master the pull of oars, and discover that the ocean has its own language for those patient enough to listen. Smith renders every detail with the warmth of memory itself: the smell of tar, the cry of gulls, the bittersweet awareness that summer cannot last forever. This is a book for quiet afternoons and curious minds, for children who have ever gazed at a horizon and wondered what lies beyond it.