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LITTLE MERMAID

From the Ten Minutes to Bed series

With illustrations that are a feast for the eyes, this story embraces both adventure and bedtime for all the little merkids.

Join a merchild as she swims through lush underwater scenes in an attempted bedtime escape.

In the newest title in Fielding’s Ten Minutes to Bed series, a mer-grandpa begins the bedtime countdown only to find little Splash missing. Like many children, mer and human, she doesn’t feel like sleeping yet. In the ensuing rhyming adventure, Splash leaps with dolphins, bravely dives deep beneath a wave, and joins a school of rainbow fish while sea creatures continue the countdown. “ ‘Seven minutes!’ called the crabs, / as they clacked their claws and feet.” When her tail tires, Splash bobs around the bay to rest until a shark’s looming shadow sends her hurrying to a peaceful beach. With only three minutes before bedtime, will Splash make it home in time? Luckily, a passing whale offers a ride. Splash careers through the ocean and swims into bed just as her grandpa calls the last warning. Finally, the adventurous Splash is happy to be home, for she has learned that “mermaids need their sleep!” Rich jewel-toned illustrations with brilliant coral reefs subtly become bluer—and cooler—as the story progresses. However, the text on several pages blends into the dark background, making reading a challenge. Splash and her grandpa have light brown skin, but Splash’s hair is black and his is white. Other merchildren are shown with dark hair and a variety of skin tones. (This book was reviewed digitally with 9.45-by-22.84-inch double-page spreads viewed at 9.2% of actual size.)

With illustrations that are a feast for the eyes, this story embraces both adventure and bedtime for all the little merkids. (map) (Picture book. 3-6)

Pub Date: May 4, 2021

ISBN: 978-0-241-50231-0

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Ladybird

Review Posted Online: March 16, 2021

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2021

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SAIL AWAY DRAGON

Fans of the series will delight in seeing these favorites again, and Girl and Dragon should win some new ones.

A young girl and a dragon take their sweet friendship on an adventure.

After sharing the beginning and deepening of their friendship in Lovabye Dragon (2012) and Evermore Dragon (2015), Joosse puts this twosome on a journey to the high seas. Girl, forever sleeping in her same bed, dreams of sailing away. Dragon, snug in his lair, dreams of sailing with Girl. “Sometimes when friends share a heart / they dream the same thing, apart.” So they pack a wicker basket, a spyglass, and a banner and wave goodbye. The ocean provides plenty of interest with dolphins, whales, and Bad Hats with ratty beards (depicted as Vikings who differ only in the amount of their facial hair). There’s also a cat. The dreamy, highly textured oil pictures by Cecil in his signature palette of gentle grays, greens, and blues make the transition from land to sea seamlessly. With a tender nod to “The Owl and the Pussycat,” the scenery is full of diversions while the clever rhyming verse full of wordplay drifts the story farther from Home. The hazy images allow young minds to see this tiny princess with dark hair as racially ambiguous. As in many famous stories, one must leave home to find home, which is the same for these two loving friends. “With Dragon as boat / and Girl as crew / there was nothing—nothing—they couldn’t do!”

Fans of the series will delight in seeing these favorites again, and Girl and Dragon should win some new ones. (Picture book. 3-6)

Pub Date: Oct. 24, 2017

ISBN: 978-0-7636-7313-0

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Candlewick

Review Posted Online: Aug. 1, 2017

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2017

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EVERMORE DRAGON

A beguiling read-aloud for more than princess-and-dragon lovers.

The comforting friendship between a young girl and an enormous dragon deepens.

In Lovabye Dragon (2012), Joosse shared a hopeful tale of sweet friendship between an unlikely pair. Moving on from the first book, the friendship continues to grow here with an innocent game of hide-and-seek. Doesn’t Girl see the dragon hiding behind a very small rock? Both children and adults reading this story will chuckle, though for slightly different reasons. The two friends delight in their togetherness. When Girl takes her turn to hide, she runs to a faraway hidey-hole and becomes lost in the night, separated from Dragon. “But she cried silver tears / worry worry tears / and her heart thumped a sound / a trem-below sound / that only Dragon friends, / very very special friends, can hear.” So summoned, the distressed Dragon flies to her rescue: “I am here,” he rumbles; Girl whispers, “You’re a dear.” Although the theme of rescue seems similar to the first title, the thoughtfully constructed, rhythmic text sprinkled with clever neologisms moves the action forward, while the comforting palette of hazy grays, blues, and browns keeps the distress minimal. The teary and frightened Girl shines in her starlike yellow gown, muted yet hope-filled on the dreamy pages.

A beguiling read-aloud for more than princess-and-dragon lovers. (Picture book. 3-6)

Pub Date: Aug. 4, 2015

ISBN: 978-0-7636-6882-2

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Candlewick

Review Posted Online: April 28, 2015

Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2015

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