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Town Is by the Sea

Joanne Schwartz,

Sydney Smith (Illustrator)

4.19 · Rating details · 1,345 ratings · 345 reviews

A young boy wakes up to the sound of the sea, visits his grandfather’s grave after lunch and comes home to a simple family dinner with his family, but all the while his mind strays to his father digging for coal deep down under the sea. Stunning illustrations by Sydney Smith, the award-winning illustrator of Sidewalk Flowers, show the striking contrast between a sparkling ...more

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Hardcover, 52 pages

Published April 1st 2017 by Groundwood Books

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Lists with This Book

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Community Reviews

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Average rating 4.19 ·

Rating details

· 1,345 ratings · 345 reviews

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Sep 19, 2017 Hilary rated it really liked it

Recommends it for: Fathers reading to sons.

Recommended to Hilary by: Found in the library

Shelves: family-stories, female-author-or-illustrator, great-illustrations

This is a beautiful book and would make a perfect book for boys to read with their fathers and especially meaningful to anyone who has relatives who have worked in the mines.

The story follows a young boy who lives by the sea. He describes his day by the glittering sea and sunny park whilst being aware that his father is below in the coal mines. Whilst he enjoys the freedom of childhood and beautiful surroundings he is aware one day his time will come to follow his father to work in the mines.

It' ...more

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Jun 13, 2017 Betsy rated it it was amazing

Shelves: canadian-authors, picture-books

There’s been a lot of talk lately about how a parent can engender empathy in their children. It’s a good question and worth a lot of discussion and listening. As a parent I’ve wondered about it myself, but it's not the only question I've asked myself. How do you give a child a sense of self-worth without false ego inflation? Does responsibility linked with a direct reward system help or hurt the child in the long run? And most importantly (and this is a kicker) how do you help a child feel grate There’s been a lot of talk lately about how a parent can engender empathy in their children. It’s a good question and worth a lot of discussion and listening. As a parent I’ve wondered about it myself, but it's not the only question I've asked myself. How do you give a child a sense of self-worth without false ego inflation? Does responsibility linked with a direct reward system help or hurt the child in the long run? And most importantly (and this is a kicker) how do you help a child feel grateful for the life that they lead? Gratitude is a particularly difficult feeling to get a read on. You could spend all your livelong days telling a kid how grateful they should feel, but are you really going to get an emotional response out of them? Enter literature. Books. Learning. On Twitter today I saw an article in passing that suggested that we learn how to be human through books. If that’s the case then let me read Town Is by the Sea to my kids one more time. Exquisitely rendered, it’s a subtle day-in-the-life title that through the repetition of the text, and the pairing of light and dark images, manages to show, not tell, how hard the life of a coal miner’s kid can be.

“From my house, I can see the sea.” A boy narrates a typical day in a Cape Breton mining town. While he scampers up the hills, plays with his friend, swings, walks to the store, and admires the sunlight on the water, his father toils away beneath the sea in a coal mine. The boy narrates for us how his days tend to play out and though we seem to see what looks like a collapse in the mine, nothing changes the boy’s spritely text. He’s no more excited than usual when his father comes home, but we know how close the man came to death. As the boy drifts off for the night we are assured that one day, down in those deep dark tunnels, “it will be my turn.” And the cycle of mining will begin anew.

I love a picture book that knows how to be a picture book. Joanne Schwartz has been in this game for years and you can tell (and the fact that she’s a double threat as both author and children’s librarian probably doesn’t hurt matters either). The choice use of repetition and simple lines lend the text this oddly comforting quality, even as some of the images grow increasingly suspect. The fact that the book is narrated in the first person present tense is a careful choice. In the voice of the boy you discovered that in the face of uncertainty (whether or not his dad will come home alive at the end of the day) the boy has organized his life precisely. The location of his house to the road, cliff, sea, and town. A catalog of sounds heard when he wakes up. The form of the boy’s morning, lunch, and walk to the store. And these words are so constant and comforting to the reader that when you hit on that silent two-page spread, not knowing if the dad is alive or dead, it’s a gut punch. Artist Sydney Smith is also on board with the boy's systematic cataloging, turning the bright days of summer into six distinct squares on the penultimate pages, finalizing everything with the black of the sea at night.

For such a dark concept it’s not a dark book. When my husband and I read this book to our six-year-old and three-year-old they seemed more intrigued by the fact that a kid could walk by himself to the store (this is the 50s’ after all) than the fact that someday that boy will work all day in the claustrophobic dark below the sea. Indeed I was intrigued to find that the chilling final lines of the picture book sink far deeper into the psyches of the adults reading this book than the kids. But I like that Joanne Schwartz does not judge the workers or the town. The inevitability of becoming a miner isn’t delivered by the young protagonist with anything more than simple honesty. Just listen to those final lines: “I’m a miner’s son. In my town, that’s the way it goes.” The dread I felt when he alluded to his future was purely personal, helped in no small part by Schwartz & Smith’s clever pairing of sunlight and gloom throughout the book. You might not want to work down there, but when your future is set in stone it’s hard to think outside the box. There’s a quote that Schwartz includes in her Author’s Note from Robert McIntosh’s Boys in the Pits: Child Labour in the Coal Mines that summarizes this perfectly. “The boy may have seen for years his father and older brothers leave for the pit. For most boys raised within these communities, the day arrived when they too surrendered their childhood to it.”

Toronto artist Sydney Smith first came to the notice of a lot of American children’s librarians when he illustrated JonArno Lawson’s sublime Sidewalk Flowers. Smith captured the tone of the book so beautifully that had he any American residency at all that title would have been a true Caldecott Award contender. In “Town Is by the Sea” Smith stretches his proverbial limbs. Interestingly, he doesn’t dwell on the industrial grit and grime of the coal mines. The image of the industrial site is almost rudimentary and down in the mines themselves he’s far more interested in conveying the sheer oppressive weight of the rock and the sea by placing the workers in the lowest strata of the page. The bulk of the book is far more interested in light. How it fogs the horizon in the morning so that the line between sea and sky blurs to white. How a midday sun flecks the tips of the waves out at sea a pure white. Early afternoon sunlight through windowpanes and the sparkle of sun on sea and that sunset . . . that sunset. Though the Author’s Note at the end mentions that this book is set in the 1950s, you wouldn’t necessarily notice. There’s a timeless quality to these watercolors.

To feel gratitude for one’s life, one needs to start out in a pretty privileged position from the start. If there’s nothing to feel grateful for then you’re probably not going to start because of a picture book. Still, a lot of kids in America that have regular access to picture books should feel a little gratitude for the fact that they don’t have to work in the coal mines when they turn 18. You get the feeling from the boy in Town Is by the Sea that he is perfectly aware of how lucky he is to see the sun shining on the sea all day every day. Schwartz and Smith have created a book that is both a good story and a beautiful object. A book that grants dignity to its characters and a seriousness to its subject matter without sacrificing a child’s need for play. This is, in short, a magnificent book. The kind that every reader will interpret in a different way. Only the best books can do that. Only the best books are capable.

For ages 4-9. ...more

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Oct 14, 2019 Dave Schaafsma rated it really liked it

Shelves: picturebooks

A kind of portrait of a coal miner’s son in a Cape Breton town illustrated with a lovely dark palette by Sydney Smith. The boy is a coal miner's grandson and coal miner's son and he expects to be a coal miner himself. It's what his family does. Living by the sea is lovely, but the men dig for coal in a mine underneath the sea, and almost never see it during the daylight. The boy's grandfather asked to be buried in a plot overlooking the water since he had spent so much of his life underground. W ...more

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Nov 04, 2017 Karen Witzler rated it really liked it

Shelves: children-s-picture

Beautiful illustrations by Sydney Smith and a rare look at the world of a working-class little boy who is aware that he is expected to follow the other men in his family into work as a coal-miner.

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Apr 14, 2018 Melki rated it really liked it

Shelves: kidstuff

This is a simple story of how a Cape Breton boy spends his day in the village by the sea, contrasted with his own father's day spent mining coal. Even with its dark, dreary palette, this is a strikingly beautiful book.

description

A lovely portrait of a childhood in times before the internet.

...more

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Nov 01, 2017 Darinda rated it it was amazing

Shelves: childrens-picture

A boy's day. He wakes up, plays with a friend, goes to the store for his mother, and visits his grandfather's grave. Throughout the day, he looks at the sea and thinks of his father, a miner who digs under the sea.

A moving story about mining families. Beautifully illustrated. ...more

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Jul 02, 2017 KC rated it really liked it

Shelves: adventure, childrens, picture-book, family, exploration

The artwork is stunning. The story is a bit too long but lovely.

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Sep 03, 2017 Agnė rated it liked it

Shelves: historical-fiction, picturebook, realistic-fiction, children, fiction

3.5 out of 5

Town Is by the Sea manages to be both quietly beautiful and depressingly fatalistic. Joanne Schwartz's laconic, matter-of-fact, and somewhat repetitive text is oddly comforting, while the story's depth and mixed emotions are revealed through Sydney Smith's masterfully paced illustrations that often are worth a thousand words. The contrast between the images of the stunningly realistic sea at different points throughout the day and the claustrophobic mines is especially jarring:

...more

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Jun 08, 2018 Mathew rated it it was amazing

Shelves: children-taking-on-adult-roles, childrens-literature, geology, identity, key-stage-2, key-stage-1, real-life, love, picturebook, coming-of-age

Seagulls call out on the shore wind and the fine mist spray of the restless sea hits us: white breakers captured in an endless wash against the cliff-slide of a small mining town in 1950s' Nova Scotia. So begins Schwartz’s and Smith’s ballad Town is by the Sea a mesmerising, dream-like ballad to a place enslaved to time and a dangerous history lost beneath the strata. Full review here
...more

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Oct 09, 2018 Megan Watterson rated it it was amazing

This book was being used in a year 3/4 class on my placement. I loved this book for using with the class. There are so many messages in it of family and tradition alongside an innocent child. The author is creative in their writing and the description along with the drawings makes for a very powerful story. I would definitely recommend this book.

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Jun 25, 2018 Phoebe Ledster rated it it was amazing

Shelves: eal, non-fiction, children-s-picture-book, ks1, ks2, ks1-2

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Jan 06, 2019 Laura rated it really liked it

Shelves: picture-book, canadian, canada, miners

All good children's books can be read on two levels, and so can this one.

On one level, you have a simple story of a boy, in the Summer, going about his usual day of getting up, going out to play, and running errands for his mother, and having dinner with his father.

But underneath it all is the coal mine, both figurativly and literally. With each comment he makes abouat his day, he mentions that is where his father is, and we see him, down in the mines, working away, and almost being buried.

One ...more

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Nov 23, 2020 Tukunjil Nayeera rated it really liked it

Shelves: kids-storytime, graphic-novel

This book is equally beautiful and depressive!

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Jan 08, 2018 Joshua Wallington rated it it was amazing

A lovely book exploring the life of a son of a miner who must follow within his footsteps. Beautiful images supported by effective underlying picturebook codes to promote high-quality discussion throughout the story.

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Nov 17, 2017 Julie rated it really liked it

Shelves: children-s

I enjoyed the contrast of the dark enclosed space of the mines versus the wide open airiness of the ocean. I also felt sad and wished for more for the boy than the legacy of the mines.

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Jul 09, 2018 Tom Garrett rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

A powerful picturebook giving insight into the life of a young miner’s son who, inevitably, will end up working in the mines too. It gives a great impression of entrapment and repetition that defines the young boys life, and indeed the lives of many other children around the world today.

Schwartz’s writing is bleak and Smith’s illustrations are beautifully stark which helps craft this tale. Time spent with this book only enhances the experience, the subtleties of the rich illustrations for examp ...more

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Jan 08, 2018 Nicki Fairman rated it it was amazing

A beautiful story about a boy who watches his father go to the mines each morning, knowing this too is his future. With detailed pictures, the reader feels empathy towards the innocent child.

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Apr 19, 2017 Rebecca rated it it was amazing

Shelves: words-and-pictures, art-medium-pen-and-ink, favoriteillustrations, picture-books

As the Horn Book review says, "There’s a distilled, haiku-like quality to this boy’s description of an ordinary summer day in a seaside coal mining town in the 1950s." This is a book to study -- one of the best pairings of words and pictures I have seen, and masterful in tone and voice. In Sydney Smith's watercolor and ink illustrations, there's the sparkly sea, the dark mines, and the world between. I see anxiety about the father's return (and the boy's future) in the rough, dark lines of the i ...more

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Nov 26, 2017 Ms. B rated it liked it

Shelves: historical-fiction, 2017, picture

Full of sensory details, a little boy describes a day in his life in a small, coastal, coal mining town. Will those not living by the ocean or without knowledge of coal mining enjoy this book with a quiet beauty of its own?

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Apr 17, 2017 Steph rated it it was amazing

It goes like this:

Read. This. Book. :-)

(Lovely. Perfect for sequencing. Perfect for lots of things.) 💛

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Oct 19, 2018 Zoe rated it it was amazing

I like this book because it involves some sequencing, for example, 'when I wake up it goes like this...... first I hear the seagulls, then I hear a dog barking..'. I feel the use of sequencing in the text would enable children to create meaning from it because they would be able to similarly talk about their daily routine and share these with others, this also puts the text into a context. The images in the text are clearly created to represent the words in the text. I like how some of the image I like this book because it involves some sequencing, for example, 'when I wake up it goes like this...... first I hear the seagulls, then I hear a dog barking..'. I feel the use of sequencing in the text would enable children to create meaning from it because they would be able to similarly talk about their daily routine and share these with others, this also puts the text into a context. The images in the text are clearly created to represent the words in the text. I like how some of the images in the text are illustrated in the same format as a comic strip, for example, the illustrations of the boys on the swings are drawn in steps to show the actions of the characters, this again links back to sequencing events. I also like how the author regularly refers back to the sea because they talk about the sea in a range of contexts which creates an image of the environment and also how the boy perceives the sea as a relevant aspect to his town. The author regularly repeats the phrase 'and deep down under that sea, my father is digging for coal'- I think the author is trying to remind the reader about the history of mining and to educate children about the work of a miner. This could be a cross curricular link from English to history because children could learn about communities and the history of mining.
The story is told through the use of characters, the main character (a boy) tells the story about his town and what happens during his day at the key points (morning, lunch, afternoon, supper and night time). Throughout the text there seems to be a repetitive structure, it seems that the author begins with the main character telling the story about his events during a part of the day, then it moves on to a mini description/ some information about the sea's appearance and finally the author refers to the father of the boy working beneath the sea. This seems to be a common structure of the book which I found interesting to read because it made me look out for the patterns and pick out key events. I particularly like the ending of the story because it links all the messages from the story together with the phrases 'One day it will be my turn' 'I'm a miners son'. For me this made me think about the idea of children following in the footsteps of their parents in terms of career pathways. I think this could be an interesting discussion to have in the classroom because it would enable children to think about the future and what they would like to do. ...more

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Sep 16, 2020 Sarah Gerard rated it really liked it

Shelves: picture-books

A beautiful and poetic picture book written from the perspective of a young boy who lives by the sea. His father works in the coal mines, a theme which is repeated throughout. I really liked this repetition- to me the repetition of the line ‘deep under the sea is where my father digs for coal’ perhaps signifies the innocence and lack of understanding the boy has for what his father does. Would be great to use cross curricular linking to History and PSHE (family relationships). I found the book r ...more

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Oct 07, 2020 Hannah rated it really liked it

Shelves: picture-books, family

This story is very simple, yet can have many different messages embedded within it. Town is by the sea is a story told from the perspective of a young boy about his life by the sea. There is constant repetition and reference to his father who is a coal miner. We don't learn much more about what his father does as a coal miner which could also be a reflection of how little the boy himself knows about his father's job. What I loved most about this book is the illustrations and how they add depth t ...more

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Oct 29, 2020 Annalise Nakoneczny rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, 2020

I could literally stare at this book for hours. These illustrations are incredibly gorgeous, simple, and wide open as the sea described in the book. This is the story of a mining town, and it's not without danger. I have literally taken pictures of these illustrations so I can send them to everyone I know. Oh my word. This is one of those children's books I'll be buying for myself. ...more

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Oct 15, 2019 Jacob Summerill rated it really liked it

A lovely picture book that gives a great insight into a young miner's son who ends up working in the mines too. The writing and illustration is brilliant and crafts the tale well. ...more

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Dec 07, 2017 Marjorie Ingall rated it it was amazing

Shelves: kids-3-6, kids-4-8

This is just ravishing. Sydney Smith's art -- I do not have words. The way he draws sunlight on water. Damn.

But Schwartz's text resonated too -- it's a love letter to a small mining town and the families hanging in there. I found myself thinking about Rhode Island, where I grew up, which is, you know, not known for its COAL. But it is a tiny, economically depressed state that was unfortunately dependent on a futureless industry -- in its case, costume-jewelry-making, which of course doesn't happ ...more

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Feb 02, 2018 Joshua Troyano rated it really liked it

Shelves: literature-for-young-children, reviewed

In my opinion, “Town is by the sea” is a fantastic picture book, as it is able to combine the text with the pictures to bring the story to life. It uses flowing and vibrant pictures to show the outdoors, and this changes when it comes to viewing the coal mines as it becomes more dark and gloomy.
The story shows two contrasting worlds with in the main characters life, that of the boy and that of the father. The boys world is full of vibrant outdoor experiences that are encompassed by the freedom ...more

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Apr 06, 2017 Edward Sullivan rated it it was amazing

Shelves: picture-books, labor, canada

Text and illustrations work in perfect harmony in this haunting story set in a Cape Breton, Nova Scotia mining town, offering a striking contrast between a sparkling seaside day and the darkness underground where the miners dig.

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