Salt the Water

Cerulean Gene is free everywhere except school, where they're known for repeatedly challenging authority. Raised in a free-spirited home by two loving parents who encourage Cerulean to be their full self, they've got big dreams of moving cross-country to live off the grid with their friends after graduation. But a fight with a teacher spirals out of control, and Cerulean impulsively drops out to avoid the punishment they fear is coming. Why wait for graduation to leave an oppressive capitalist system and live their dreams?

Cerulean is truly brilliant, but their sheltered upbringing hasn't prepared them for the consequences of their choice -- especially not when it's compounded by a family emergency that puts a parent out of work. Suddenly the money they'd been stacking with their friends is a resource that the family needs to stay afloat.

Salt the Water is a book about dreaming in a world that has other plans for your time, your youth, and your future. It asks, what does it look like when a bunch of queer Black kids are allowed to dream? And what does it look like for them to confront the present circumstances of the people they love while still pursuing a wildly different future of their own?

Author: Candice Iloh
Binding Type: Hardcover
Publisher: Dutton Books for Young Readers
Published: 10/03/2023
Pages: 288
Weight: 0.85lbs
Size: 8.40h x 5.80w x 1.20d
ISBN: 9780593529317
Audience: Young Adult


Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 08/15/2023
Publishers Weekly 09/04/2023
Booklist 09/01/2023 pg. 87
Shelf Awareness 10/20/2023
School Library Journal 12/01/2023 pg. 96

About the Author
Candice Iloh is a first generation Nigerian-American writer, teaching artist, and youth educator. They are a graduate of Howard University and hold an MFA in writing from Lesley University. Their work has earned fellowships from Lambda Literary and VONA among many others. Their debut novel, Every Body Looking, was a finalist for the National Book Award and earned a Michael L. Printz honor.