Murray Out of Water by Taylor Tracy

Each Friday that school is in session, I share the link to a read-aloud preview of a book from SRCSA library. The “First-chapter Friday” selection for March 21, 2025 is Murray Out of Water by Taylor Tracy.

Bighearted and observant 12-year-old Murray O’Shea loves the ocean. Every chance she gets, she’s in it. It could be because the ocean never makes her apologize for being exactly who she is—something her family refuses to do — but it could also be because of the secret magic that Murray shares with the ocean. Though she can’t explain its presence, the electric buzz she feels from her fingertips down to her toes allows her to become one with the ocean and all its creatures, and it makes Murray feel seen in a way she never feels on land. But then a hurricane hits Murray’s Jersey Shore home, sending the O’Sheas far inland to live with relatives. Being this far from the ocean, Murray seems to lose her magic. And stuck in a house with her family, she can no longer avoid the truths she’s discovering about herself — like how she feels in the clothes her mom makes her wear, or why she doesn’t have boys on the brain like other girls her age. But it’s not all hurricanes and heartache. Thankfully, Murray befriends a boy named Dylan, who has a magic of his own. When Murray agrees to partner with him for a youth roller-rama competition in exchange for help getting her magic back, the two forge an unstoppable bond — one that shows Murray how it’s not always the family you were given that makes you feel whole...sometimes it’s the family you build along the way.
https://youtu.be/7r6H_DkWsnM

First-chapter Friday playlist on YouTube:
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL6F1x26TGVFF4Clbqq18kcKCxfxnuDx4w