“Raw, real and deeply hopeful” — ALICE OSEMAN

Rumi Seto spends a lot of time worrying. What to eat, where to go, who to love. But one thing she is sure of — she wants to spend her life writing music with her younger sister, Lea.

Then Lea dies in a car accident, and Rumi is sent to live with her aunt in Hawaii. Now, miles from home, Rumi struggles to navigate the loss of her sister, feeling abandoned by her mother, and the aching absence of music.

With the help of the “boys next door” — teenage surfer Kai, who doesn't take anything too seriously, and old George Watanabe, who succumbed to grief years ago — Rumi seeks her way back to music, to write the song she and Lea never had the chance to finish.

With unflinching honesty, Summer Bird Blue explores big truths about insurmountable grief, unconditional love, and how to forgive even when it feels impossible.

PRAISE FOR SUMMER BIRD BLUE

“Raw, real and deeply hopeful. I will read anything Akemi Dawn Bowman writes.” — ALICE OSEMAN author of I Was Born For This and Radio Silence

“Bowman dives into the sea of grief with her protagonist and celebrates the kinds of love that are eclipsed all too often. With this remarkable book, she has cemented her position as one of the most progressive and insightful authors of her generation.”— SAMANTHA SHANNON author of The Priory of the Orange Tree and The Bone Season series

«Summer Bird Blue is without a doubt one of the best books I've read this year. It grabs your heart and won't let go.» — BOOK RIOT