This book was very moving and incredibly motivational. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this, the pace was zippy and I loved hearing Figs tales of her swimming. I truly felt for her pains with her Mubla and how overbearing she was. Fig was a likeable protagonist and a good role model.

I wanted to love it. I liked the messages it had about being yourself and doing stuff for yourself but when she actually left to go swimming the world it was so unrealistic I couldn’t get behind it.

A great coming of age book that gave my passion for swimming back. I loved the friendships made throughout between the young and old! The journey she went on was amazing to read

Fig, or Lemony, as her mother calls her has an intense relationship with her family, mainly her mother. She lives with her Mum, Dad and little brother. Fig is tall and gets bullied at school, due to her height, intelligence and the fact that her father is an embalmer. School is nothing compared to how she is bullied by her mother at home. As a reader, it is hard to read and the empathy felt towards Fig is immense. Mubla, as she likes to be called, has high standards and expectations on Fig.
Setting a New Years resolution, Fig must figure out a way to see it through, Normally, Mubla sets the resolutions for Fig but this year is different.
A complete non swimmer with a fear of the water, Fig decides to swim the world.
Plotting a course of swims around the world and a set of lies, Fig makes list after list.
When opportunities knock and things begin to fall into place, the reality sets in for Fig.
Following Fig and her story makes me feel like anything is possible! This is a story about a 15 year old with a huge commitment to her resolution. From non swimmer to runaway to success, this is an epic journey.
Fig meets friends for life, makes independence look easy and risks everything to prove herself to Mubla and the world!

A wonderful story!

Fig is clever, she lives at home with a younger brother, Mum and Dad. But she is bullied at school, pushed to do more study at home by her mother and is generally fed up. She is 15 and wants more. Her mother has come up with a New Year's resolution for Fig, acting classes with the local drama club. But Fig's New Year's resolution was a bit different, she is going to swim the world. 19 fresh or salt water races in 6 continents, over the space of a year. Slight problem - she can't swim. But as her very protective, pushy mother says resolutions should not be broken.
So begins an adventure into the unknown, the making of lasting friendships, a growing confidence in herself, that she could achieve something that her mother had no control over, and having the strength to stand up for herself.
In this age of mobile technology and social media, Fig finds the strength to turn off her phone and enjoy the journey.
This is a debut novel and I loved it.
I was given this e-book via net galley and Little Tiger publishers for a frank and honest review.

“I’m sick of my mother controlling me. She’s hacked into my life for too long, insisting on her ‘It’s my way or the highway’ rules; on me having to follow her timetable, dressing the way she suggests; achieving the New Year’s resolutions she makes for me.”

Mubla decides what her daughter’s New Year’s resolution is going to be each year. Fig isn’t allowed to quit or fail, even if she hates the goal her mother has chosen. This year Mubla has signed Fig up for acting lessons. Fig doesn’t want to act and the idea of being on a stage terrifies her.

Fig has had enough of her mother controlling her. She decides to make her own resolution: Fig is going to swim the world! There’s just one catch; she can’t swim. Oh, and she’s scared of swimming. And of plenty of animals that live in the water. And of being alone. And the list goes on.

Speaking of lists, Fig loves making them. She also loves maths. Both will come in handy as she plans her adventure.

“It’s as much about the mental challenge as the physical. All you need is self-belief …”

I was looking forward to following Fig’s adventure around the world and when I learned of her struggles with anxiety I was even more invested in her success. I was keen to watch her learn to manage her anxiety, striving to achieve a goal that scared her. However, the more I got to know Fig the less I liked her. She was selfish and spoilt, and she annoyed me so much. The majority of the time Fig was more concerned with getting caught than with the impact her disappearance would be having on the people who love her.

I’ve disliked the main character in other books and still enjoyed the story though, so my frustration with Fig wouldn’t have been an issue for me if it wasn’t for my inability to suspend my disbelief. I read a lot of children’s and YA books and usually don’t have a problem with this. In this instance though, I think it would have helped if I could have read Fig’s story when I was a child. Unfortunately, adult me kept getting distracted, having trouble believing Fig’s year would have transpired the way it did.

[Spoilers Ahead! Please don’t open this section of my review if you haven’t read the book.]

⚠️ [Although her parents are supposedly searching for Fig and there’s a social media campaign to find her, she manages to elude everyone for months when this should not have been the case. Why?

1. Fig used her mother’s credit card to finance the travel portion of her adventure. Her mother and/or the Police could have easily tracked her every step of the way. Why didn’t her mother advise her credit card company that the charges were fraudulent and cancelled them? Fig couldn’t have continued travelling all over the place if her travel reservations were cancelled. If, as her mother claimed, she knew where Fig was then why didn’t she go and bring her home immediately?

2. Fig uploaded photos of herself to social media along the way. Yes, her account was set to private some of the time but surely someone could have done a reverse image search, figured out her alias and found her by checking the metadata on her photographs.

This family seem to have the kind of money I could only dream of. The swimming equipment that Fig purchased with a “leftover birthday gift voucher” would be equivalent to my income for about two months. Fig doesn’t understand why her mother won’t trust her when she’s previously given her no reason not to, and I understand wanting to rebel against a controlling parent. However, the amount of money Fig must have stolen from her parents and her disregard for the morality of this decision got under my skin.] ⚠️

I had a particular soft spot for Jago, Fig’s younger brother. I wanted to get to know him better. I don’t know how Fig could leave Jago without really considering how her absence would affect him. I also didn’t think she was a good friend to Stella, who was supposed to be her best friend. I wish I could have spent more time with Sage and Myrtle; they were interesting enough to warrant an entire book dedicated to their lives.

Some scenes were too convenient for me and others quite predictable. ⚠️ [It seemed awfully convenient for Fig to be seated next to an open water swimmer on a plane when she needed information and encouragement specific to this. The identity of one of the people who follows Fig on social media seemed obvious to me, yet she didn’t figure out who it was until near the end of her adventure. I expected the reveal about one of the minor characters, which happened late in the book, once the first clue was planted.] ⚠️

I admired Fig’s determination in facing her fears and achieving her goal, despite the anxiety she experienced, but I wanted to give her a good talking to whenever she felt the need to complain while she was doing exactly what she wanted.

“I hate sailing! I’m sick of this trip!”

I’ve loved all of the other books published by Little Tiger Group as much, or even more, than I expected to, so I’m really disappointed that this one didn’t work for me. If I’d managed to get out of my head early on when I was questioning the practicalities I probably would have been able to just keep swimming. Please read some other reviews before deciding if this is the book for you or not. I hope it’s a five star read for you.

“Bubble, bubble, breathe.”

Content warnings include anxiety and bullying. If you have emetophobia you may find it difficult to read some scenes.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Stripes Publishing, an imprint of Little Tiger Group, for the opportunity to read this book.

A quirky, heartwarming coming-of-age story with a likeable, downtrodden heroine who slowly discovers her own strength. Overall premise & caricature of a mother do rather stretch the bounds of credulity but with wonderful supporting characters & the investment the reader feels in Fig's journey to empowerment it doesn't really matter in the end. It even made me want to have a go at wild swimming! An unusual & memorable debut.

I read a lot of YA, and it's very rare that I find myself disliking a book. This book was one of those rarities. Although I finished it, I just couldn't get along with it. The writing style is supposedly for young people, but the main character doesn't sound like a 15/16 year old in the slightest. Her narrative voice is grating from the outset and she's supremely entitled - her having access to a savings account of £10,000 being just one example.

Her story - of a teen who first teaches herself to swim then runs away from home for a year to take part in swimming competitions across the globe - is immensely unbelievable to the point of frustration. Every member of the supporting cast has a nickname which gets really confusing when reading, particularly as several have similar sounding names. A slog of a read. All in all, not one I'll be recommending in the slightest.

Aimed at 10-14 year olds this is a wonderful story of Fig, given name Lemony, teenage daughter of fiercely controlling QC mother Mubla and gentle but ineffective embalmer father Dab Dabs. Every year Fig's mum sets a resolution and expects Fig to achieve it, this year Fig has had enough and sets her own to swim the world. She can't actually swim but that is a minor hiccup compared to working out travel arrangements and finances. With the support of her best friend, she meets a delightful older woman who helps her learn to swim and encourages her to achieve her dream. The book then follows Fig's adventures, the story moves along well and the characters are well written, there are realistic scenes of Fig being scared and using social media to connect to her friends. It also reminded me how wonderful swimming can be and helped me imagine wild open water swimming which is all the rage now.

With thanks to Net galley for a free ARC in exchange for a review.

This book was an alright. Nothing ground breaking but enjoyable.

The one downside of the book was that the main character was supposed to be 15/16 but they sounded much younger.