Bad Mermaids Make Waves

February 1, 2018

Gr 4-6-Mermaids Beatrice, Mimi, and Zelda's summer on land is coming to an end. They get a mysterious note ordering them to return home at once. The queen has been fishnapped and a bunch of bad mermaids have taken over, with piranhas preventing mermaids from leaving their homes and everyone being forced to make fish jewelry for the new queen, "The Swan." The only clues to the queen's location lie behind enemy lines. Can the trio save the rightful queen and stop the bad mermaids? The plot is well developed and engaging. The characters are easy to like, believable, and draw readers into the story. Although the slightly cheesy fish slang takes some getting used to, Pounder adeptly mixes mystery and adventure. VERDICT A light fantasy recommended for library collections where mermaid tales are popular.-Kira Moody, Salt Lake County Library Services

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 1, 2018
Oh cod! Someone has fishnapped the Mermaid Queen!All young mermaids are required to spend a summer on land, with temporary legs and feet. Beattie, Mimi, and Zelda are three such mermaids, enjoying hot dogs by the sea, when crabmail arrives from the missing queen herself. The girls must end their summer early and arrive home by midnight--only they can stop the titular bad mermaids threatening the Hidden Lagoon in the queen's absence. When the girls arrive, they find Periwinkle Palace deserted except for an army of piranhas and a new queen, a mysterious mermaid who calls herself The Swan and who is forcing all mermaids to make shell tops for some unknown reason. The trio steal a clamshell car and set out to find the real Mermaid Queen and stop The Swan from carrying out her nefarious plan to control all mermaids. Beattie, whom the black-and-white illustrations portray as dark-skinned, is the leader. Fraternal twins Zelda and Mimi are shown with pale skin. Each mermaid has unique traits that set her apart from the others, and each uses her personal strengths to solve the mystery and save the day. Creative metafictive elements and tongue-in-cheek jokes about mermaid myths such as perpetual hair combing round out the lightning-fast plot. A cliffhanger finale suggests a sequel.Fin-tastic fun. (Fantasy. 8-12)

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March 15, 2018
Grades 3-6 Just a few short weeks into their summer on legs, mermaids Beattie, Zelda, and Mimi receive word from their queen that there are bad mermaids in their lagoon. Upon their return, they find their home infested by piranhas, which are monitoring all the merpeople; the queen missing; and the kingdom now under the rule of a mysterious character, the Swan, and her piranha army chief, Ommy. It's up to the three girls to investigate the queen's disappearance and save the day. Readers who love fantasy, particularly mermaids, and those who enjoy a good mystery will flip over this fresh, modern take with copious illustrations throughout. It's also a lovely example of strong, healthy female friendship, as the main characters don't fight; instead, they work to each other's strengths and stick together, despite their quirks and the pressure of saving everyone in their home. Readers who dig it will be happy to know that this is a series opener, so any tantalizing loose threads will likely be woven into a big tapestry.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)