This story is about a young girl with a hearing impairment who resents having to wear a hearing aid and learn sign language. The she meets a silent girl on the beach who turns out to be a mermaid. The mermaid had disobeyed the merfolk laws and as punishment was banished from the sea, thrust onto land with legs. She and the girl strike up a friendship. Under the water, mermaids speak via signals with bubbles and hand gestures, so the two easily work out how to communicate in sign language. The girl comes to find beauty in the fluid motion of speaking hands, and the mermaid does a good deed for a dolphin, after which she is allowed to return to the sea. The Mermaid's Three Wisdoms is a nice little book. It reminds me somewhat of The Seal Child.Rating: 2/5 ........ 112 pages, 1978
Sounds like a sweet story, but your "2" rating doesn't bode well.
ReplyDeleteWell, it just was not very memorable, and too simple in parts, even though it's geared at the younger J Fic readers. So I guess that rating just says: would I ever read this book again? a solid no. Would I recommend it to a child? just maybe.
ReplyDeleteWell, at least it's got a great cover!
ReplyDeleteThe illustrations inside, all done in graphite pencil, are very nice too.
ReplyDeleteWell, this book seems great just for the illustrations, even if you didn't like the story.
ReplyDeleteI just finished Jane Yolen's The Devil's Arithmetic, and it was great! I think I'll pass on this one, though.
ReplyDelete--Anna
Diary of an Eccentric