THE BULL SHARK

When bull sharks turn up in the residential canals of Sarasota, Florida, a young boy is determined to find out why.

Sixth grader Barn Whimbril, whose pale white skin burns easily in the Florida sun, is obsessed with two things: sharks and the Boston Red Sox. Looking forward to attending the opening day of spring training at Fort Myers, he quickly changes plans when he gets an alert on his phone about a shark attack in the area. Wanting to investigate further, and put his special knowledge of shark behavior (he even breeds cat sharks for sale) to use, he sets out to find proof that the sharks are there so the community can be properly informed when making decisions on how to deal with the problem. This fast-paced ecological mystery will easily keep readers intrigued as Barn, often getting close to danger, tries to understand why sharks are being drawn to the canal so changes can be made before local residents use dynamite as a solution, killing both sharks and other marine life. Heavy-handed in its foreshadowing, especially in the frequency with which Barn promises not to go into the water, nevertheless it remains accessible and engaging. Barn is often assisted by two friends: Margaret, who is also white, and Finn, an Inuit boy “with a heavy brow ridge” who was interracially adopted from Greenland.

A thriller with lots of teeth.