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3rd out of 22 books
—
11 voters
Mermaid Tales from Around the World
Enchanting tales of sea nymphs from 12 cultures, including Chinese, Iranian, African, and Native American, are eloquently retold in this acclaimed collection. Full color. An "American Bookseller" Pick of the Lists.
Hardcover
Published
(first published 1993)
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Before The Magic Treehouse books, Mary Pope Osborne collected these stories of water nymphs from around the world. I liked the inclusion of unusual stories like "Menana of the Waterfall" (a Romeo & Juliet tale set among the Ottawas) and "The Sea Princess of Persia" and the Japanese "The Serpent and the Sea Queen," alongside more familiar stories about Melusine and the little mermaid, who is nameless in this version and turns to seafoam when her love goes unrequited. This isn't so much a book...more
3 likes · like · see review
view 2 comments
Jan 23, 2010
Dolly
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
parents reading with their children
Shelves:
2010,
africa,
childrens,
canada,
france-french,
english,
iran-persia,
native-american,
ocean-seashore,
greece-greek,
ireland-irish,
ukraine,
japan,
china-chinese,
germany,
denmark,
monsters
This is a fairly long anthology of mermaid stories from various cultures. They aren't of Disney ilk and I think that was wonderful, but it was a little confusing for our girls. When I read "The Little Mermaid" to them, they complained that it wasn't the 'original' story (which for them, of course, was the Disney version.) They didn't really understand why mermaids weren't all beautiful, kind and sweet in these stories, but they did enjoy the tales. I thought the stories were wonderful and I love...more
Not for tots; in fact probably best for teens and young women. Stunning illustrations done in the style of artwork from which culture each tale is drawn. For example, the English tale looks like a 'primitive' pub-sign family portrait, and the tale from Greece looks like it's from a terra-cotta urn. Gracefully retold to make reading and understanding easier - but still true to the style & themes of the originals (at least the ones I knew). Good author and great illustrator notes. I recommend...more
I remember reading this book as a little girl. My sisters and I would go to our local library and check this book out over and over again. Beautifully illustrated tales of mermaid from different cultures. My favorite was Menana of the Waterfall.
Emily loved this book. We read it aloud to her. It did have some tales that were a bit gruesome seeming to me (mostly people being suicidal and drowning themselves after their mermaid friend left).
By no means exhaustive in nature, the book is written more like a kind of kids' introduction to mermaid folklore. It's quick and easily digested. Start to finish in one reading.
Who can resist Mermaid tales? Especially ones that stay true to the original--i.e. the little mermaid dies. Anyway, my 9 yr. daughter loved them and I enjoyed them too.
Lovely, with a far-reaching and unique collection of stories that surpass current mermaid cliches. Menana and the waterfall was my favorite- her retelling was exquisite.
I remember this book from when I was a little kid, the art is fantastic and the tales are easy to read.
I really liked some of these stories.And the illustrations were beautiful.
Beautiful illustrations corresponding to the cultures of the various tales, and good - sometimes creepy - stories make this a great book.
This is an awesome book!
Mermaids are awesome!
This book contained short stories about mermaids. It was definitely an awesome read. I got this book as a gift from my Elementary school and I enjoyed each and every one of the unique stories. My favorite one was the one where the mermaid cannot tell her husband that she is a mermaid, but he finds out anyway. These stories exceeded my expectations and I will definitely read them again.
Really interesting artwork in this book. The artist works with the style of art from each country that the tales come from. Stories are not what you usually find. Enjoyable.
May 20, 2013
Chaos
marked it as to-read
May 20, 2013
Emily Taninecz
marked it as to-read
May 19, 2013
Rahim Rahman
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May 18, 2013
Brady
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May 16, 2013
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May 16, 2013
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May 15, 2013
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May 14, 2013
Cydney
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May 11, 2013
Audrey Hepburn
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Mary Pope Osborne has channeled a lifelong love of exploration and travel into one of the most popular children’s book series of the past two decades. With her fantastic Magic Tree House series, Mary Pope Osborne keeps the good times rolling for kids all over the world.
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