The House on Sunrise Lagoon
Join the Ali-O’Connors for summertime fun!
Two moms plus five kids and one Great Dane equals ️a summer of hijinks and family fun at the Jersey Shore!
The House on the Sunrise Lagoon Series is for middle graders ages 8 and up from award-winning author, Nicole Melleby.
From an acclaimed author comes a cheerful, uplifting story of family and belonging, the first in a series perfect for fans of the Vanderbeekers and the Penderwicks.
If you want to get to know eleven-year-old Samantha Ali-O’Connor, you need to know three things:
One, she isn’t the only one of her siblings who is adopted, but she is the only one whose name isn’t inspired by the ocean.
Two, she and Harbor always compete with each other to be the best Oldest Sibling—and just about everything else.
And three, she is determined to prove she’s a real Ali-O’Connor by taking over the family business, repairing and chartering boats.
Except there’s a Capital-P Problem: Her mothers have been Serious Whispering about selling the business before summer’s end! Sam needs to come up with a plan, quick, before Harbor finds out. And before Sam loses her chance to inherit the business and be an Ali-O’Connor forever.
If you want to get to know Marina Ali-O’Connor, you need to know three things:
One, despite her name, Marina is secretly afraid of the water.
Two, she wanted to be one of the Oldest Siblings, but is stuck smack dab in the middle.
Three, she’s pretty certain she’s the Extra Ali-O’Connor kid—the forgotten one.
When Boom, a budding filmmaker exactly Marina’s age, moves in across the lagoon, she decides that Marina’s quest to become someone’s favorite Ali-O’Connor would make a perfect documentary. But when each plan goes a little bit wrong, Marina begins to wonder if she’ll ever feel like she belongs, or if she’ll always be lost in the middle.
If you want to get to know Harbor Moore, you need to know three things:
1. Sometimes she signs her name Harbor Ali-O’Connor to match her siblings.
2. She misses her dad a lot, but she doesn’t want to be away from her moms and siblings, either.
3. She just might have her first crush.
Harbor is excited to spend the summer working on her jump shot in an elite basketball league. But the games take place near her dad's house—hours away from her beloved Sunrise Lagoon. Suddenly, she’s spending every weekend at her dad’s and getting to know Quinn, a girl whose smile makes her feel warm inside. Still, Harbor can’t help wondering what’s going on at home. Why is Sam hanging out with Harbor's best friend? Has Marina’s friend Boom taken her place in the house? What have the twins “borrowed” this time for one of their disastrous scientific experiments?
When it comes time to decide whether Harbor will stay and play basketball with her team—and Quinn—all year round, or continue to live on Sunrise Lagoon, Harbor thinks she knows what to do . . . but is it the right decision?
