Johnny, the Sea, and Me - by Melba Escobar (Hardcover)

About the Book

While on vacation in the Caribbean, timid ten-year-old Pedro, who grows and shrinks depending on his emotions, gets lost and befriends Johnny, a gruff islander descended from pirates, who helps change Pedro's life.

Book Synopsis

A 2025 Batchelder Honor Book! ★ A heartwarming middle-grade novel from Colombia about a ten-year-old boy and the larger-than-life figure who changes him forever.

Pedro is dealing with a lot for a ten-year-old kid, both at school and at home. So he's overjoyed when his mom surprises him with a trip to see the ocean--an experience he's been dreaming about for a long time!

Maybe this trip will make everything better. Maybe it will make his dad come back to him and his mom. Maybe he will stop being bullied at school, once he's seen the ocean! But things go wrong right from the start between Pedro and his mom, and all seems lost, until Pedro is found and taken in by a gruff old sea dog who has something magical about him.

Tender, funny, and stamped with psychological truth, Johnny, the Sea, and Me offers the thrills of pirate adventures and the rich cultural history of the Caribbean, along with strong characters and a satisfying and moving portrait of an unusual friendship. Adeptly translated by Sara Lissa Paulson and beautifully illustrated by Elizabeth Builes, this book is sure to resonate with readers young and old.

Review Quotes

A 2025 Mildred L. Batchelder Honor Book
An Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) 2025 Notable Children's Book
Selected for the USBBY Outstanding International Book List, 2025
A Reading Group Choices Favorite YA for April 2025
A Publishers Weekly New & Noteworthy Children's Book of July 2024
A Parade Magazine Best New Book Release of the Week
The Scripps National Spelling Bee Book Club's Pick for August 2024
One of Latinx in Publishing's Most Anticipated July 2024 Releases
Selected for the Children's Book Council Spring 2024 Showcase on Transformation​

STARRED REVIEW! ★ "Translator Paulson (Book of Questions) gracefully incorporates hints of magical realism from Colombian writer Escobar... Escobar's compatriot Builes contributes delicately lined artwork to this tale, which ruminates on the healing presence of a figure who lives life on his own terms."

-- "Publishers Weekly"

"Made up of salient early moments in a boy's coming of age, this Colombian import contains glints of magical realism and a picaresque, albeit parrot-narrated, pirate subplot. Pedro grows and shrinks according to his emotional state, and Escobar's wry musings about treasure--is it the purported pirates' plundered gold, or the island's magnificent, prolific breadfruit tree?--sparkle like the seven-colored sea. Builes' pale, delicate illustrations add humorous touches. Lively and thought provoking."-- "Kirkus Reviews"

"Originally published in Colombia, the story is beautifully told in spare language, evidencing the truth that less is more. Pedro and Johnny are well-developed characters, and their warm relationship is nicely realized. The book itself, beautifully designed, is enriched by lovely illustrations by artist Builes. It's a treasure."-- "Booklist"

About the Author

Melba Escobar is a Colombian author and journalist. Her debut Spanish-language children's book, Johnny, the Sea, and Me, was selected for the 2015 White Ravens catalog as an outstanding international book by the International Youth Library. Escobar lives in Barcelona with her husband and two children, and writes for El País and Colombia's El Tiempo.

Elizabeth Builes is a Colombian illustrator who won the Tragaluz Illustration Award in 2013 and went on to receive worldwide recognition for the original Colombian edition of Johnny, the Sea and Me in 2015.

Sara Lissa Paulson is a translator of Spanish and Latin American poetry, picture books, and middle grade fiction. Her first translation, Pablo Neruda's Book of Questions, illustrated by Paloma Valdivia, was selected as a New York Times Best Children's Book of 2022.