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Mermaid Dreams
Mermaids come in all shapes and sizes! In this sweet picture book, a shy little girl goes on a magical underwater adventure filled with adorable mermaids, silly sea creatures, games with new friends and wonderful surprises!
One sunny Saturday, Maya and her parents visit the beach. Maya loves the beach: the warm sand feels wonderful between her toes. But it would be more fun if she had a friend. Too shy to say hello, Maya watches the kids play nearby, and slowly her eyes droop closed . . .
When Maya awakens she has been transported to a magical underwater world. Maya admires the sea creatures flitting around her, and she discovers that she too has a beautiful tail. Maya is a mermaid! But who is calling out a greeting from behind that coral? Whose bright eyes are peering at her from the sea grass? Whose laughter does she hear? Could it be a new friend? Or just another sea creature?
This adorable picture book will delight the youngest daydreamers and shows us that making new friends may not be as hard as you think -- if you have a good imagination!
One sunny Saturday, Maya and her parents visit the beach. Maya loves the beach: the warm sand feels wonderful between her toes. But it would be more fun if she had a friend. Too shy to say hello, Maya watches the kids play nearby, and slowly her eyes droop closed . . .
When Maya awakens she has been transported to a magical underwater world. Maya admires the sea creatures flitting around her, and she discovers that she too has a beautiful tail. Maya is a mermaid! But who is calling out a greeting from behind that coral? Whose bright eyes are peering at her from the sea grass? Whose laughter does she hear? Could it be a new friend? Or just another sea creature?
This adorable picture book will delight the youngest daydreamers and shows us that making new friends may not be as hard as you think -- if you have a good imagination!
32 pages, Hardcover
First published April 30, 2019
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 40 reviews
April 30, 2019
Mermaid Dreams was just not a good match for me. The story isn't terribly thrilling, nor is it amusing; it's just kind of there. I didn't really get the point. I think I might like this a lot more as a wordless picture book.
The illustrations are hit and miss for me. I love some of the scenes with aquatic life, but I do not care for the style used for the people. I think most of the illustrations will be appealing to little ones, though, as the colour palette is quite vibrant.
2.5 stars rounded up.
Thank you to NetGalley and Tundra Books for providing me with a DRC of this book.
The illustrations are hit and miss for me. I love some of the scenes with aquatic life, but I do not care for the style used for the people. I think most of the illustrations will be appealing to little ones, though, as the colour palette is quite vibrant.
2.5 stars rounded up.
Thank you to NetGalley and Tundra Books for providing me with a DRC of this book.
June 27, 2019
This was ok. It didn't do much for me. I was expecting something that would feel a little more magical, based on the description.
April 2, 2019
This book didn't start off too well for me, with the off-putting behaviour of the parents making me pretty angry. As soon as the family gets to the beach, Maya wants to play. But her parents tell her no, because they just want to relax with a beer and a book. Then they basically pawn her off on the beach population in general, telling her to go play. Safety concerns aside, I felt really sorry for the kid. Anyway, she's too shy to say hello to the other kids, so she just lies down on her turtle floaty in the blazing sun and falls asleep. (The parents are safely under their beach umbrella, and there was no mention of sunscreen or a hat for the kid. I bet she returns from every day at the beach with a horrible sunburn.)
The dream is juvenile and the unappealing illustrations don't help. Maya basically turns into a mermaid and encounters various sea creatures, all while searching for the owner of a giggling voice. Of course, it turns out to be another little-girl mermaid. When she eventually wakes up, she plays with Pearl (the little girl who's the owner of the voice she heard in the dream) while her parents continue to ignore their young child on a beach that appears to have no lifeguard.
I just didn't enjoy this one. The appeal is likely supposed to be the mermaid angle... but there are better mermaid-themed books out there.
Thank you to NetGalley and Tundra Books (NY) for providing a digital ARC.
The dream is juvenile and the unappealing illustrations don't help. Maya basically turns into a mermaid and encounters various sea creatures, all while searching for the owner of a giggling voice. Of course, it turns out to be another little-girl mermaid. When she eventually wakes up, she plays with Pearl (the little girl who's the owner of the voice she heard in the dream) while her parents continue to ignore their young child on a beach that appears to have no lifeguard.
I just didn't enjoy this one. The appeal is likely supposed to be the mermaid angle... but there are better mermaid-themed books out there.
Thank you to NetGalley and Tundra Books (NY) for providing a digital ARC.
May 31, 2019
This is a beautifully illustrated story about friendship and imagination. When Maya and her family visit the beach, she is disappointed that rather than spend time playing with her parents, they shoo her off to play with the other kids. Maya being shy, falls asleep on her floaty turtle. While sleeping she has an amazing dream about being a mermaid. She meets another friendly mermaid and off they go on adventures where she sees many other sea creatures. When she wakes up, she notices another girl, who looks just like her mermaid friend. They discover that they have a lot in common and play together.
This is a relatively simple story, that is very realistic today. Maya has to use her imagination and dreams because being an only child with busy parents, she is often alone. With the wonderful, colourful illustrations in this book, the listener (in this case my three year old granddaughter) can travel under the sea with mermaid Maya and see many sea creatures as well as discover that it can be easier than you think to make a new friend. My granddaughter loved the illustrations in this book and kept asking me what everything was. I had trouble turning the pages and she kept wanting to go back. I think my older grandchild would have enjoyed the story aspect, for her it was the illustrations. The publisher generously provided me with a copy of this book upon request. The rating, ideas and opinions shared are my own.
This is a relatively simple story, that is very realistic today. Maya has to use her imagination and dreams because being an only child with busy parents, she is often alone. With the wonderful, colourful illustrations in this book, the listener (in this case my three year old granddaughter) can travel under the sea with mermaid Maya and see many sea creatures as well as discover that it can be easier than you think to make a new friend. My granddaughter loved the illustrations in this book and kept asking me what everything was. I had trouble turning the pages and she kept wanting to go back. I think my older grandchild would have enjoyed the story aspect, for her it was the illustrations. The publisher generously provided me with a copy of this book upon request. The rating, ideas and opinions shared are my own.
April 30, 2019
This story was an absolute delight. It was very timely as well, as my daughter is going through a mermaid phase at the moment. It tells the story of Maya, and her beach adventure during a day at shore with her parents. This book is beautifully illustrated, and that was one of my daughter's favourite things about it. She really enjoyed the illustrations, especially the underwater scenes. The story also gets into the psyche of a child, and how being shy might cause them to miss out on exciting experiences.
May 2, 2019
An adorable story with great art. A couple years ago I lamented that there weren't enough picture books about mermaids to satisfy all the requests. This picture book would be a great addition to any library collection. It would also make a great read-a-loud for storytimes. There are points for children to guess what will happen next, and to name animals. I love the message about imaginative play and finding "your person."
October 21, 2019
A gentle story which could have easily worked as a wordless picture book but the illustrations are utterly divine! I wish I could frame them!
November 19, 2019
A sweet story about a shy girl who struggles making friends. Many children find making friends an intimidating task. There are many different personalities out there in the world as shown in the book with the different sea creatures, and it may take time to find someone you click with. Pugsley shows that any friendship can begin with a simple “hello”. This book could prove very useful to children who are both shy like maya (encouraging them to start out with a hello) as well as more outgoing children like pearl (encouraging them to not leave other children out).
December 12, 2019
Pearl is, seemingly, an only child who is shy and reserved. Whilst out at the beach she watches the other children play but is too nervous to join in. Her parents don't want to play with her either so Maya chooses to rest instead. Settled, she imagines herself in the sea looking and listening to the sounds. Might she find a friend there?
Pugsley's illustrations are beautiful and there is a good attempt here at the rhythm and repetition that comes with early picturebooks. The story is sweet but the message is one in which Maya doesn't learn anything but rather the world works to accommodate her. In the waters she searches for a friend and finds a mermaid only to woken up from her dreams by a young similarly-looking girl who invites her to play. Surely it would have made more sense for Maya to wake up, see that making a friend doesn't have to be scary, and approach the girl herself?
Pugsley's illustrations are beautiful and there is a good attempt here at the rhythm and repetition that comes with early picturebooks. The story is sweet but the message is one in which Maya doesn't learn anything but rather the world works to accommodate her. In the waters she searches for a friend and finds a mermaid only to woken up from her dreams by a young similarly-looking girl who invites her to play. Surely it would have made more sense for Maya to wake up, see that making a friend doesn't have to be scary, and approach the girl herself?
May 14, 2019
This book had a lot of promise. Its about imagination and making friends. Maya visits the beach with her parents, feels too shy to make friends, dreams of being a mermaid, and does, predictably, make a friend. However, this book just did not hit home for me. I felt like the parents were a little rude and the text of the book felt choppy. It would not make a good read-aloud.
On the good side, the illustrations are quite sweet. They also feature diverse children of various backgrounds, which in this day and age is important for children's picture books.
Thank you to LibraryThing Early Reviewers and Tundra Books for the review copy of this book.
On the good side, the illustrations are quite sweet. They also feature diverse children of various backgrounds, which in this day and age is important for children's picture books.
Thank you to LibraryThing Early Reviewers and Tundra Books for the review copy of this book.
June 17, 2019
“Mermaid Dreams” has colorful illustrations that might appeal to children but I felt the story itself was stilted and choppy. I didn’t feel like the story was all that mermaidy and would hold a child’s attention, especially if you’re looking for a mermaid book (there isn’t a whole lot to do with mermaids in this one). I can’t recommend this book to parents. My niece didn’t even care for it when I gave it to her to read and she loves all things to do with mermaids and reading.
E’s review: She wasn’t very nice to the animals under the sea, and I just didn’t like the book.
I give this book 1 star.
I won this book from LibraryThing from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
E’s review: She wasn’t very nice to the animals under the sea, and I just didn’t like the book.
I give this book 1 star.
I won this book from LibraryThing from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
September 20, 2019
Maya is too shy to ask other children to play with her, so she becomes a mermaid in her dreams and searched the ocean for a friend. Unfortunately, the sea creatures don't make good playmates, but she finds another mermaid and when she wakes, she finds a real girl to play with has found her. And they go off to pretend to be mermaids ... confusingly with a kite. Okay, it's a kite shaped like a jellyfish, but it's still a kite. "This is my pet jellyfish on a leash!"?
Shy kids should get over it! Lying on the beach with your eyes closed is no way to make friends - if that's what you want to do.
Illustrations cute and primitive.
Shy kids should get over it! Lying on the beach with your eyes closed is no way to make friends - if that's what you want to do.
Illustrations cute and primitive.
October 21, 2020
A sweet story with fun & quirky illustrations. A day out at the beach with parents should be perfect right? But Maya is lonely and wants to play with other children, however she is too shy. She falls asleep on her float and dreams of adventures to the bottom of the sea as a mermaid, where she meets many creatures, including another mermaid! The mermaids befriend each other and play hide and seek in the ocean, until Maya is woken up by the same mermaid asking to play, but now she's a girl!
A great, simple story about friendship, looking out for people who look lonely, and the fun adventures having courage can bring!
A great, simple story about friendship, looking out for people who look lonely, and the fun adventures having courage can bring!
March 12, 2019
Let this charming picturebook transport you to a warm beach and cool sea... From the beginning of the book I just felt like saying "ahhh," as you do when you sink your toes into warm sand. This story was so sweet and full of sweet childish play. It's the perfect book to kick off your summer reading and support any young readers who are a bit shy around new people.
May 15, 2019
This is a beautiful little book about the power of imagination and creativity. Young Maya is at the beach, too shy to play with others, when she falls asleep and dreams she is a mermaid. While in her Mermaid Dream, she discovers another mermaid who wants to play. When she wakes up, there is a real girl who wants to play.
March 11, 2019
Finn desperately wants a friend to play with at the beach, but even more so she would love to meet a mermaid. When she falls asleep her dreams take her to a magical underwater world where she meets a mermaid and becomes one herself. When she wakes up she spies a new friend to share her day with.
May 13, 2019
Maya loves the beach, but is a little shy when it comes to making friends. While sitting on her turtle float, she drifts off to sleep, and dreams she meets a mermaid who befriends her. When she arouses from her slumber she finds a new friend who wants to play.
October 21, 2019
Disclaimer: A copy was provided for this review by the publisher.
This is a simple, yet sweet, story of a girl who wants to make friends, but doesn't know how. I can totally relate to her parents, who are just so tired and are encouraging her to find other kids to play with and enjoy the beach.
This is a simple, yet sweet, story of a girl who wants to make friends, but doesn't know how. I can totally relate to her parents, who are just so tired and are encouraging her to find other kids to play with and enjoy the beach.
May 29, 2019
A sweet friendship story with a cute mermaid theme. This is sure to be a big hit with the preschool crowd.
June 28, 2019
I loved the charming illustrations and the sweet story about a girl's big imagination. Fun look as well at what lies under the ocean.
July 10, 2019
I like this book because it was a mermaid who finds a friend at the end, who is also a mermaid.
July 31, 2019
A young girl falls asleep on her families beach outing and then dreams of being a mermaid. Preschool and up
September 4, 2019
Okay story of a young girl looking for some summer time beach fun.
Read
September 23, 2019Little black girl is a mermaid! I don't like the absence of illustrated sand. Unless they are on a white sandy beach? Decent story.
October 3, 2019
Super cute--a little girl at the beach imagines she is a mermaid, searching for a friend mermaid who is hiding.
January 3, 2020
Maya goes to the beach with her parents and has an imaginative adventure under the sea.
Love the imagery, okay story.
Love the imagery, okay story.
February 4, 2020
cute but nothing special
October 15, 2020
I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I think kids will be drawn to the bright, colorful pictures. The story is cute and flows well.
I think kids will be drawn to the bright, colorful pictures. The story is cute and flows well.
October 25, 2020
Cute story— I don’t love the illustrations though.
June 8, 2022
A young girl visits the beach but is too shy to make friends. Instead, she imagines becoming a mermaid and finding a friend under the sea.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 40 reviews