While I enjoyed reading a book set in Arkansas (my home state!) and recognizing the connections that Teague drew, this book was a strange read. The characters are very young, and the language simplistic, but it doesn't really feel like YA or even middle grade. I liked the way it began with A.Z. wanting to be a marine biologist, but it took a nose dive once she got caught up with Kristoff, who was really awful.

This book was intriguing, with an interesting and somewhat poetic style of writing that is great for those who care about the style of writing in a book. A.Z. is an interesting character to follow and the plot is engaging and keeps you entertained. Personally, I would have liked more focus on AZ and the science and seat that she is interested in, which did not get the attention I think it deserved. It's a bit 'heavier' than a normal young adult book but would be great for older teen readers.

If you love whimsical and different writing that is almost more poetic than literary this book will be perfect for you!
I personally need a different writing style to enjoy a book more so this wasn't really that great for me even though the plot, characters and read of the book were pretty good, the writing just kept working against my enjoyment for this novel.

I received a copy from Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

This was a great read. The story was very interesting and engaging.

The Principles Behind Flotation goes beyond the usual YA genre, with it's whimsical language and crazy cast of characters. With a storyline set in Arkansas in 1989 and a subtle religious strain, this is an interesting storyline that would be enjoyed by YA readers who are looking for something more substantial.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this opportunity.

This was better than most YA books but it was weird. The sentence structure was whimsical and fun. All of the characters were flawed enough to be real people and that was refreshing. A.Z. was engaging but not consistently written. Kristoff just really got on my nerves. He was flighty and artsy and it was irritating. Everything is "conceptual art" and I'm not sure how nerdy A.Z. considered that she could be in love with him, but at least it wasn't insta-love and that automatically makes it better than a lot of YA out there. Oh! And no love triangles! Thank the YA gods! A.Z.'s parents were very accepting and seemed like very good parents; especially her mother who doesn't judge or punish A.Z. for losing her virginity and actually drives her to Planned Parenthood (which was a very accurate and realistic depiction and I appreciated that) to get her necessities. The author gave A.Z.'s mother a weird back story and she tells all of these random stories that kinda make the entire book seem like a vehicle for different anecdotes the author collected.
The setting was weird; Arkansas in 1989 but there's something akin to Scientology called the New Arkansas Church which is mentioned a lot in the beginning of the book but not so much toward the end, where it focuses more on the Baptists.
Overall, this feels like a debut novel. The author has room to grow and if she does, I look forward to seeing what she produces next.

I am not sure how I feel about this book. It has a crazy group of characters: AZ, a sophomore trying to do research on the miracle sea near her house to use for her application for sea camp, her father, the journalist, editor, and publisher for the local paper who spout alliterations and Shakespeare like some odd form of Tourette’s, her mom, the town librarian who dropped out of high school and likes to tell a lot of odd stories that usually involve old boyfriends, and Kristoff, AZ’s boyfriend and supposed artist. I think I had the biggest problem with him. He seemed to be a slakker who used his “art” as an excuse for not doing what he needed to do or for making poor unthoughtful choices. This trait seemed to pop up at the worst possible times throughout the story. Oh, and the tourists that come to visit the Sea of Santiago (That the history of is never really spelled out. It just appeared one day and now people pay to come see it.) are called pilgrims. The story covers the summer between sophomore and junior year for AZ. She is trying to put together research so she can go to sea camp and become an oceanographer. This involves stealing water samples from the sea and is the center of a comedy of errors. Except it doesn’t feel so humorous as you read it. Like I said, I am not sure how I feel about the story. And the moment I thought should have had the biggest impact felt pushed aside.

This was a great read. The story was very interesting and engaging. Anastasia Zoe is obsessed with the sea and studies it greatly. The interaction with Anastasia and Kristoff was cute. She was very awkward. I thought her mother was a bit of a gossiper. Also, her father seems to love Shakespeare. I really enjoyed her journey to build a boat and examine the salinity level of the sea. The story was actually really funny, and I was surprised by that. Overall, an enjoyable read.

I like the way Principles Behind Flotation starts out, with A.Z., a 14-year old with good grades, a strong work ethic instilled in her by her librarian mom and journalist father, and a healthy interest in marine biology. Owing to the age of the main character, relative simplicity of the language, and relatability of the protagonist's problems, I assumed this was YA fiction. Initially the setting confused me, I wasn't sure if this was a dystopian future or set in the actual 1980's, or why religious pilgrims would be so gullible as to travel to this Compolodo place to honor a shyster's salty lake "miracle"?

As I read on, the focus seemed to shift from A.Z. being a science girl, confident in her smarts and abilities, knowing herself and geekily pontificating on wonders and truth and the lateral centering of a mast and whatnot, to more about acquaintances practicing blowjobs on frozen hotdogs, a friend wrecking her car multiple times in one weekend to no apparent consequence, the virtues of Mountain Dew, Jagermeister and beer, professing a bike as being "for retards," suddenly getting naked with a boy, and hangover-vomiting on the floor of a church. So if this book is written for 14-year olds, I think the author did well in intricately detailing A.Z.'s experience at Planned Parenthood; but I didn't see a lot of the other provocative stuff serving any purpose other than gratuitous titillation - and yes, I am aware that that is the norm - but I really appreciate Teague's strong and sensible framework (Shakespeare's Tempest, Chopin's Edna Pointellier, Sea Camp) and I want authors like her to know there is a market for that. Why have brainy women fixate on a belly pooch, with a 5'4" 122-pound frame?

THE PRINCIPLES OF FLOTATION is just a delight! Teague gives us the town of Compolopo, a creatively imagined tourist trap whose industry depend on a miraculous inland sea. Teenaged Anastasia Zoe (aka A.Z.) is obsessed with the sea and studies it surreptitiously (direct investigation of the properties of the sea would never be allowed by the landowners on whose property it sits. She enlists help from the new kid in town, Kristoff, an artist, a chicken killer and a highly neglected teen. We watch A.Z. awkwardly navigate her crush on Kristoff, her oversharing mother and Shakespeare-spouting father while trying to build a boat to examine the salinity levels in the middle of the sea. This story was both hilarious and touching and I will be buying several copies for the teens I know.