Cushman, Karen. When Sally O’Malley Discovered the Sea. Knopf, 03/2025. 230pp. Fiction. Trade $17.99. 978-0-593-65057-8. GRADES 4–6. HIGH ADDITIONAL.
Orphan Sally O’Malley is on her own in Oregon in 1894 when she decides it is time to see the ocean. She gets a wagon ride from an older woman named Major who is transporting an annoying little boy to relatives, and the journey begins. The rambling story includes comedic language such as “whippersnapper” and “dad blame it,” with Sally’s distinctive first-person voice. Sally exhibits persistence and determination, similar to Cushman’s previous characters seen in Catherine, Called Birdy (Clarion, 1994), The Midwife’s Apprentice (Houghton Mifflin, 1991), and The Ballad of Lucy Whipple (Clarion, 1996). Although it takes a while for the action to get going, this is an engaging story showing how females helped to settle the Pacific Northwest. Main characters present as white.
Penny Peck—San José State University, iSchool