Barely Floating [Paperback]

A dazzling story full of heart about how one twelve-year-old channels her rage into synchronized swimming dreams, from the author of The Education of Margot Sanchez and Never Look Back, Lilliam Rivera.

Natalia de la Cruz Rivera y Santiago, also known as Nat, was swimming neighborhood kids out of their money at the local Boyle Heights pool when her life changed. The L.A. Mermaids performed, emerging out of the water with matching sequined swimsuits, and it was then that synchronized swimming stole her heart.

The problem? Her activist mom and professor dad think it's a sport with too much emphasis on looks—on thinness and whiteness. Nat grew up the youngest in a house full of boys, so she knows how to fight for what she wants, using her anger to fuel her. People often underestimate her swimming skills when they see her stomach rolls, but she knows better than to worry about what people think. Sometimes, she feels more like a submarine than a mermaid, but she wonders if she could be both.

Barely Floating explores what it means to sparkle in your skin, build community with those who lift you up, and keep floating when waters get rough.PRAISE FOR BARELY FLOATING:

Booklist Best Books of 2023 (Editor's Choice)
Kobo Best Books of 2023 (Kids)
2024 Rise: A Feminist Book Project List (Middle Grade: Fiction)
2024 Bank Street Best Children’s Books
The California Center for the Book - 2024 Great Reads from Great Places list
The Latinidad List Best Latino Books of 2023
First Partner Summer Book Club (First Lady of California, Jennifer Newsome, initiative)
2025 Rhode Island Latino Book Award Masterlist
2025-2026 Land of Enchantment Book Award Nominee (New Mexico)