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Intro
In the middle of February 1942, German submarines attack and blockade the strategic oil refineries on the island of Curaçao, where Phillip Enright lives with his mother and father. At first, this seems like an exciting development to the 12-year-old boy, who heads to the harbor with his friend Henrik to try to see the submarines. But his parents’ hushed arguments hint at the gravity of the situation, and soon the blockade causes stores of food and fresh water on the island to run low. Phillip’s mother decides that she and Phillip will return to their home in Virginia. His father will remain in his job on Curaçao. But only a few days into their voyage home, German submarines torpedo the ship on which they travel. As they climb into a lifeboat, the ship lurches, sending Phillip and his mother into the sea. Something hits Phillip on the head and he loses consciousness.
A few hours later, Phillip wakes with an aching head to find himself on a life raft with one of the ship’s Black sailors, an old man named Timothy. Phillip, who is white and whose mother taught him to share her racist distrust and dislike of Black people, instantly finds Timothy disturbing. But he needs the man’s help to survive, especially when his injury makes him blind. After a few days of floating at sea, Timothy spots a tiny island in the distance, where he decides he and Phillip will wait for rescue.
Over the next weeks and months, Timothy and Phillip fall into the routines of survival. They build a shelter and find food; they spell out H-E-L-P with stones in case an airplane flies overhead; they prepare a signal fire. Timothy makes a cane for Phillip, who learns to navigate the island despite his blindness. Phillip nurses Timothy through a bout of malaria. Timothy teaches Phillip to fish, and with his newfound self-confidence, Phillip finally summons the courage to shimmy up one of the cay’s tall palm trees, adding fresh coconuts into their limited diet.
After three months on the island, Timothy and Phillip have found a nice routine. But the arrival of a deadly hurricane interrupts this routine. As the storm barrels down on the tiny, low-lying cay, Timothy secures the pair’s gear and attaches a rope to one of the palm trees. He and Phillip must withstand the direct fury of the tempest with nothing more than this to protect them. By placing his body between the wind and Phillip, Timothy saves the boy from certain death. But in doing so, he sacrifices his own life. After the storm, he succumbs to his injuries and dies. Phillip buries him on the island.
A few weeks later, Phillip finally succeeds in attracting the attention of a nearby United States Navy ship, which rescues him from the island. He’s soon reunited with his parents, and, a few months later, regains his sight after a series of operations. He returns to Curaçao with a newfound maturity. He hopes that someday he can locate the cay again and return to visit—and, for the first time, see—the grave of his friend Timothy.
