All About Mermaids

April 15, 2021
Are mermaids real? For thousands of years, stories of women and men with fishlike tales have been told, but this text employs the conceit that they really exist. The thinking that dugongs or the now-extinct Steller's sea cows were mistaken for mermaids is quickly pooh-poohed. The author treats mermaids like other marine animals, discussing their habitats, their eating habits, and other aspects of their daily lives. Delicate, entrancing illustrations in an immersive, large trim display conventionally attractive shell bra-clad mermaids with diverse skin tones and hair colors, but they also show mermaids at various ages, from babies to older sea creatures, including some with different body types rarely depicted. The lone merman has pale skin, dark scraggly hair, a beard, and pointy barnacles on his shoulders. While people have always enjoyed myths and legends about these marvelous sea creatures, what's the place of this book that is presented as natural history? There is no doubt that many readers will pore over the pictures, but is the young audience prepared to understand the joke? The last page shows a young human with brown skin and dark hair lying on a beach next to a mermaid with white skin, with text that reads: "If you go down to the water and wait, sooner or later you'll see one." Is the author playing at a tongue-in-cheek game of pretend or seeding disappointment? It all depends on the gullibility of the reader. Luminescent illustrations dazzle, but this purported nonfiction study of mermaids confounds. (Picture book. 5-8)

COPYRIGHT(2021) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

April 15, 2021
Grades 1-3 This lushly illustrated picture book, first published in Australia, playfully uses a nonfiction format to explore a fantasy creature. Asserting that mermaids actually exist, the book claims they are "our closest relatives," and any negative legends, such as those saying that mermaids cause storms and shipwrecks, are due to "superstition and misunderstanding." With this premise, Quinn's lively, "factual" account of mermaids describes their physical traits and diversity (they have varying skin tones and body shapes and sizes, just like humans), diet, fashion, and child-rearing. Mermen are covered very briefly--they live alone and, sadly, don't have anyone to untangle their hair. Whimsical artwork in soft blue, green, and purple hues shows the mermaids underwater with whales and leaping through the air. Claiming mermaids live around the world, from oceans to rivers, this ultimately promises, "If you go down to the water and wait, sooner or later you'll see one." Though the tongue-in-cheek tone is dry enough that it might fly over some kids' heads, the intricate, vibrant art and overall pleasant tone will likely lure in and entrance mermaid fans.

COPYRIGHT(2021) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

June 1, 2021

Gr 1-3-A delightful read, this book breezily asserts "facts" about those legendary creatures, the mermaids. The text is perfectly deadpan, with information about mermaids always in gold-lined boxes. The illustrations are beautiful and show how mermaids are different, and how they are the same. Readers learn how they live, what they eat, and how to make friends with one. As a collection of folklore, this book is riveting, with other sea animals making cameos, aided by labels and captions. The illustrations of sea life and mermaids are breathtaking. Quinn does a great job capturing the readers' imaginations and never wavering in mission. It will be up to those sharing the book whether to break the spell or not. VERDICT A book to reassure mermaid lovers and enlighten them further.-Elizabeth Willoughby, John P. Faber Sch., Dunellen, NJ

Copyright 2021 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.