“How to breathe underwater” is about Kate who is a state-championship winner in swimming. She has spent the last 10 years of her life swimming and competing to please her father, who is also her swim coach. But her father betrays her and her family. She then realizes that while she loves swimming and water, she really hate competing. She was doing all of the competing to just please her father who made her work harder every time. Now that she doesn’t have to please him anymore, she quits swimming in her new school. She has to find a new path for her and she is trying to understand all the changes that occurred in her life after she moved to the new city.
Overall, this is a sweet and painful story of one girl’s quest to find herself and starting her life fresh. With so many important issues handled, Vicky Skinner has shown a story dealing with love and loss in its various forms. If you like reading contemporary with love, loss, drama and challenging relationships, then this book is for you.