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The Last True Poets of the Sea

The Last True Poets of the Sea Open the full-size image

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Contributors

By Julia Drake

Formats and Prices

On Sale
Jun 15, 2021
Page Count
400 pages
Publisher
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
ISBN-13
9780759554993

Price

$11.99

Price

$15.99 CAD

Format

  1. ebook

Format:

  1. Trade Paperback $11.99 $15.99 CAD
  2. ebook $9.99 $12.99 CAD

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Fans of Far from the Tree, We Are Okay, and Emergency Contact will love this epic, utterly unforgettable contemporary novel about a lost shipwreck, a missing piece of family history, and weathering the storms of life. 
 
The Larkin family isn’t just lucky—they persevere. At least that’s what Violet and her younger brother, Sam, were always told. When the Lyric sank off the coast of Maine, their great-great-great-grandmother didn’t drown like the rest of the passengers. No, Fidelia swam to shore, fell in love, and founded Lyric, Maine, the town Violet and Sam returned to every summer. But wrecks seem to run in the family: tall, funny, musical Violet can’t stop partying with the wrong people. And, one beautiful summer day, brilliant, sensitive Sam attempts to take his own life.

Shipped back to Lyric while Sam is in treatment, Violet is haunted by her family’s missing piece—the lost shipwreck she and Sam dreamed of discovering when they were children. Desperate to make amends, Violet embarks on a wildly ambitious mission: locate the Lyric, lain hidden in a watery grave for over a century. She finds a fellow wreck hunter in Liv Stone, an amateur local historian whose sparkling intelligence and guarded gray eyes make Violet ache in an exhilarating new way. Whether or not they find the Lyric, the journey Violet takes—and the bridges she builds along the way—may be the start of something like survival.
 
Epic, funny, and sweepingly romantic, The Last True Poets of the Sea is an astonishing debut about the strength it takes to swim up from a wreck.

Genre:

  • Teen & Young Adult
  • Young Adult Fiction
  • Family
  • Siblings

Julia Drake grew up outside Philadelphia. As a teenager, she played some of Shakespeare's best heroines in her high school theater program, and their stories would stay with her forever. She received her BA in Spanish from Williams College, and her MFA in creative writing from Columbia University, where she also taught writing to first-year students. She currently works as a book coach for aspiring writers and teaches creative writing classes for Writopia, a nonprofit that fosters love of writing in young adults. She lives in San Francisco with her partner and their rescue rabbit, Ned.

  • 2020 CCBC Choices List
    2021 Best Fiction for Young Adults (BFYA)
  • "At once hilarious, insightful, and swashbuckling, Drake's debut is a lyrical adventure like no other."
    David Arnold, New York Times best-selling author of Mosquitoland
  • "As warm and bright as a beach bonfire on a hazy summer night, The Last True Poets of the Sea will lift you up on a tide of love and lyricism, and carry you away, laughing and crying."
    Jeff Zentner, Morris Award-winning author
  • "This story of a young woman coming to terms with herself and her family is so filled with virtues and heart that it is hard to know where to begin. It is at once tender and incisive, profound and page-turning, warm and beautifully written and very funny."
    Madeline Miller, #1 New York Times best-selling author of Circe and Song of Achilles
  • *"Wry, quick-witted, and filled with deep grief and fathomless joy in equal measure, this is a triumphant debut. Echoes of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night and the barest touches of magical realism give shape to the story, which precisely and profoundly maps the ebbs and flows of surviving through trauma."
    Booklist (starred review)
  • *"A warm, wise, strange meditation on developing the strength to be vulnerable."
    Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
  • *"Drake has created an authentic and romantic tale, loosely based on Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, that shows that life can be embraced again even after enduring a tragedy."
    School Library Journal (starred review)
  • *"Violet emerges as a genuine, sympathetic protagonist struggling to create something new from the wreckage of her life."
    Publishers Weekly (starred review)
  • *"Drake's enthralling debut doesn't shy away from the big stuff. The Last True Poets of the Sea explores themes of identity, mental health, romance and family with grace and gravitas."
    BookPage (starred review)

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About the Author

NOVL - Headshot photo of Julia Drake

Julia Drake’s debut novel The Last True Poets of the Sea received the 2020 New England Book Award, six starred reviews, and was named a 2019 Best Book of the Year by Kirkus, Publishers Weekly, and Booklist, among other publications. She received her BA in Spanish from Williams College, and her MFA in creative writing from Columbia University, where she also taught writing to first-year students. She currently works teaching writing to undergraduates. She lives in Philadelphia with her partner and their rescue rabbit, Ned.

On the Blog

  1. The March 2025 NOVLbox: Curated by Julia Drake

  2. Build a Virtual Beach Day, Get an Actual Beach Read

  3. Choose a Sailor Scout, Get a book you should read with them!

  4. Tell us what kind of bender you are, we’ll give you a TBR to help you connect with your element

#TheLastTruePoetsOfTheSea

Julia Drake

About the Author

Julia Drake’s debut novel The Last True Poets of the Sea received the 2020 New England Book Award, six starred reviews, and was named a 2019 Best Book of the Year by Kirkus, Publishers Weekly, and Booklist, among other publications. She received her BA in Spanish from Williams College, and her MFA in creative writing from Columbia University, where she also taught writing to first-year students. She currently works teaching writing to undergraduates. She lives in Philadelphia with her partner and their rescue rabbit, Ned.

Learn more about this author

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