A newly blended family ventures to the beach together for the first time in this understated story. Lula (Black) is not so sure about sharing the trip with Simone and her son, Theo (white). Lula chafes a little when Theo hands her beach toys to her dad to load into the car, but she cheers up in the car and loves Simone’s suggestion that she and Theo build a sandcastle on the beach. Lula gets right to work but is soon frustrated by the waves’ encroaching on her sandy structure. That’s when Theo offers a helpful suggestion. “What if you add a moat? I can help you dig one.” Two wordless pages show Lula watching carefully as Theo digs a moat around her castle. It works! “But something is still missing.” Theo collects a variety of colorful shells from the shallow water and hands them to Lula so that she can decorate the walls. The finished castle is a thing of beauty. They show their parents… and then a wave crashes in, washing it away. Like any sweet big brother, Theo is reassuring. “It’s okay… Tomorrow we’ll make another sandcastle, taller, stronger, and prettier!” This snapshot of a couple of days in the life of a new family is quiet, satisfying, and refreshing in that it doesn’t feel the need to show a sibling struggle before the children have a unifying experience.