The Pearl-Shell Diver

In 1898, thirteen-year-old Sario lives with his family on a remote Torres Strait island, where the pearl-shell trade dominates daily life. When his father is forced onto a white trader's pearling lugger, Sario must become a swimming diver to support his family, dreaming of the better pay that comes with being a pump diver who walks the sea floor. The only captain willing to take him runs the fleet's most notorious outfit, and he faces fierce competition, relentless danger, and the ever-present threat of shark attack. The novel follows Sario's fight to survive the perilous waters and the shifting currents of his island's world.