The Island's Drought Crisis

The Summer Book

The conflict between imported cultivation and scarce water grows until the family must improvise a dangerous solution.

increasing

Bearing strength in each event

decreasing

The Native Turf Torn The Native Turf Torn from "The Summer Book". The Native Turf Torn A garden takes over Sophia's father cuts large sheets of turf and fills excavated holes with black soil.

The Native Turf Torn from "The Summer Book". The Native Turf Torn A garden takes over Sophia's father cuts large sheets of turf and fills excavated holes with black soil.

The Native Turf Torn A garden takes over Sophia's father cuts large sheets of turf and fills excavated holes with black soil. Grandmother worries that the native plants beneath the turf will be lost. Competing kinds of care His work protects imported flowers; hers attends to the island already there. Their disagreement is affectionate but real, because each sees a different future for the ground.

The Basin Shrinks The Basin Shrinks from "The Summer Book". The Basin Shrinks Beautiful weather turns harsh The garden system waters selected plants while the natural turf dries and spruces die.

The Basin Shrinks from "The Summer Book". The Basin Shrinks Beautiful weather turns harsh The garden system waters selected plants while the natural turf dries and spruces die.

The Basin Shrinks Beautiful weather turns harsh The garden system waters selected plants while the natural turf dries and spruces die. The basin's level falls despite the careful schedule. A limited resource Sophia prays for rain, but the weather does not change. The project's dependence on a finite supply becomes impossible to ignore.

The Pump Stops The Pump Stops from "The Summer Book". The Pump Stops The system fails The pump makes a dreadful sound and the hose falls slack.

The Pump Stops The system fails The pump makes a dreadful sound and the hose falls slack. The covered basin is empty, leaving the garden without its planned supply. Crisis demands action Sophia's father calculates, travels for supplies, and seeks advice. His delay is practical rather than careless: the family is confronting a problem not solved by routine maintenance.

A Risky Water Haul A Risky Water Haul from "The Summer Book". A Risky Water Haul An improvised vessel The Enormous Plastic Sausage is filled at a bog and towed across shallow water.

A Risky Water Haul from "The Summer Book". A Risky Water Haul An improvised vessel The Enormous Plastic Sausage is filled at a bog and towed across shallow water.

A Risky Water Haul An improvised vessel The Enormous Plastic Sausage is filled at a bog and towed across shallow water. It catches on sea grass and reefs while the boat begins taking water. Persistence under pressure The family shifts its weight, wades, and reconnects the pump. A solution exists, but only because each person continues working as the risks grow.

The Rain Breaks The Rain Breaks from "The Summer Book". The Rain Breaks Relief arrives twice The pumped water reaches the basin just as thunderstorms bring warm rain.

The Rain Breaks from "The Summer Book". The Rain Breaks Relief arrives twice The pumped water reaches the basin just as thunderstorms bring warm rain.

The Rain Breaks Relief arrives twice The pumped water reaches the basin just as thunderstorms bring warm rain. The island's stored water and the garden's supply are restored together. A changed relationship to abundance Grandmother watches the rain fill barrels and crevices, then uses drinking water on a daisy. The crisis leaves relief and a reminder that the island's limits remain.

spring, during the first phase of planting

early summer, after several weeks without rain

the evening the basin empties

the hot day the family tows water home

at the end of the water-hauling expedition