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The Magical History of Mermaids
'Ariel, listen to me.
The human world is a mess.
Life under the sea is better than
anything they got up there.'
- Sebastian, Disney's The Little Mermaid
A popular phenomenon in the modern era, sightings of mermaids have been recorded throughout ancient history, appearing in times of trouble and disaster. These elusive creatures exist powerfully in imaginative literature and have become a source of inspiration for artists throughout the world. This delightful history is illustrated primarily by new artists.
The human world is a mess.
Life under the sea is better than
anything they got up there.'
- Sebastian, Disney's The Little Mermaid
A popular phenomenon in the modern era, sightings of mermaids have been recorded throughout ancient history, appearing in times of trouble and disaster. These elusive creatures exist powerfully in imaginative literature and have become a source of inspiration for artists throughout the world. This delightful history is illustrated primarily by new artists.
127 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2018
About the author
Russ Thorne
30 books5 followersAs a boy, Russ Thorne loved reading Fighting Fantasy gamebooks, playing Hero Quest and poring over issues of 'White Dwarf', admiring the cover art in the process. Later he studied English Literature and got to know Homer's heroes and a bit of Beowulf, before beginning a career as a writer and editor. Since then he's published books on tattoo art, body piercing and vampires and writes regularly for national newspapers including the Independent.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
November 5, 2018
Solidly 3.5 stars- it was a cute book, lots of amazing pictures, facts, and drawing mermaids from the past into the present. However I had thought that the book would contain full myths and legends, which it did not. The author summarized many different legends from around the world which is wonderful for people who have a vast knowledge of mermaids. Good for a light read, however if you're looking to learn more about mermaids I'd suggest a different book.
September 1, 2023
The art is FANTASTIC (or should I say Fintastic 🧜♀️) and I mainly got the book as a way to have these gorgeous selections of artist interpreted mermaids in varying art styles in my possession. I wish there was more depth in the history and folklore sections. The book covered a lot of territory however, I would’ve been absolutely alright with a longer book if it meant more information. It’s a good starting point to begin exploring the referenced works and recommendations for other readings though.
May 11, 2026
A solid 3.5, rounded up to 4, because it is pretty.
This book is full of beautiful artwork, which is the best reason to read a book like this, but for all the artwork packed into, there were also repeat images. Given that there were mentions of famous paintings, carvings, statues, etc., and there are countless mermaid paintings out there, I would think no image would need repeating, so I was a bit disappointed on that front. Especially considering that there was a lot of emphasis on the amazing artwork revolving around mermaid lore, but none of the artwork mentioned was actually featured. With that said, I loved that I recognized multiple artists in here. That was a lot of fun to see current artists who have taken off in the fantasy world, exploring color and bringing to life the ocean sirens in ways we've only begun to imagine.
This also felt like it was just giving you enough information to let the water skim your toes. It never fully explored any of the topics and just hinted at the history of the mermaid world. I would have loved to learn more about the ancient lore, more in-depth stories about the cultural tails, erm, tales around the world, but I felt like I was always chasing the bait for more information.
I really enjoyed that this book touched on professional mermaids, though. That is such a cool career that is so relatively unknown. I know a young lady who in elementary school, that was her goal, she had a tail and was practicing swimming, had idols (Hannah the mermaid is an awesome professional mermaid/environmental awareness artist), but when she presented her paper on becoming a professional mermaid, her teacher shot it down and told her there wasn't such a job. It devastated her and from what I've gathered, it was the breaking point for her interest in pursuing it. With books like this where they bring awareness to these new avenues of mermaid-ness, they're opening up career paths for people with whimsy still in their heart, who want to be in touch with the water spirit and youth inside of them and of course, get paid to do it. With any luck, the more that professional mermaids and mermen are brought out into the spotlight by being featured in things like books, the more likely other young children will not have their dreams destroyed.
I thought the layout of the book was pretty too, but I didn't enjoy the curly font for the questions and sections. It made it hard to read at times.
Overall, I would recommend this for the mermaid hobbyist. It touches on some more mature subjects without getting too spicy, the artwork is beautiful, and it is fun to dip your toes into the history of mermaids. This was given to me as a gift, and I ate it up in one sitting, appreciating the thought and love that went into giving it to me cause it's a worthwhile read.
This book is full of beautiful artwork, which is the best reason to read a book like this, but for all the artwork packed into, there were also repeat images. Given that there were mentions of famous paintings, carvings, statues, etc., and there are countless mermaid paintings out there, I would think no image would need repeating, so I was a bit disappointed on that front. Especially considering that there was a lot of emphasis on the amazing artwork revolving around mermaid lore, but none of the artwork mentioned was actually featured. With that said, I loved that I recognized multiple artists in here. That was a lot of fun to see current artists who have taken off in the fantasy world, exploring color and bringing to life the ocean sirens in ways we've only begun to imagine.
This also felt like it was just giving you enough information to let the water skim your toes. It never fully explored any of the topics and just hinted at the history of the mermaid world. I would have loved to learn more about the ancient lore, more in-depth stories about the cultural tails, erm, tales around the world, but I felt like I was always chasing the bait for more information.
I really enjoyed that this book touched on professional mermaids, though. That is such a cool career that is so relatively unknown. I know a young lady who in elementary school, that was her goal, she had a tail and was practicing swimming, had idols (Hannah the mermaid is an awesome professional mermaid/environmental awareness artist), but when she presented her paper on becoming a professional mermaid, her teacher shot it down and told her there wasn't such a job. It devastated her and from what I've gathered, it was the breaking point for her interest in pursuing it. With books like this where they bring awareness to these new avenues of mermaid-ness, they're opening up career paths for people with whimsy still in their heart, who want to be in touch with the water spirit and youth inside of them and of course, get paid to do it. With any luck, the more that professional mermaids and mermen are brought out into the spotlight by being featured in things like books, the more likely other young children will not have their dreams destroyed.
I thought the layout of the book was pretty too, but I didn't enjoy the curly font for the questions and sections. It made it hard to read at times.
Overall, I would recommend this for the mermaid hobbyist. It touches on some more mature subjects without getting too spicy, the artwork is beautiful, and it is fun to dip your toes into the history of mermaids. This was given to me as a gift, and I ate it up in one sitting, appreciating the thought and love that went into giving it to me cause it's a worthwhile read.
February 15, 2020
I'll be honest: I mostly got this for the pictures. I was hoping to have my imagination inspired by looking at the art, as I feel like the kind of mermaid story I want to read doesn't exist.
The text is fairly generic "sailors once claimed to see mermaids" stuff, as if the author realized that young girls receiving this would immediately tear the book up to make mermaid collages for their bedroom walls. The book makes good material for a budding collage artist.
The art is beautiful - colorful and several with the feel of watercolor paintings. Some anime-style, some in a more realistic style. I didn't find it as imaginative as I'd hoped, though. Most of the art doesn't tell a story, but rather just has a traditionally beautiful mermaid looking beguilingly at the viewer or smiling at a boyfriend or father figure. There were some interesting variations: a few pictures that show more aquatic-looking mermaids (upper bodies with gills, scales, barnacles) and some mermaid mothers with mer-babies. One mer-baby is inside a translucent egg, playing on the idea of mermaids as fish.
I'm sure most tween girls will love this. When I was twelve, I probably would have only wanted pretty pictures of mermaids with long flowing hair, and this book delivers.
The text is fairly generic "sailors once claimed to see mermaids" stuff, as if the author realized that young girls receiving this would immediately tear the book up to make mermaid collages for their bedroom walls. The book makes good material for a budding collage artist.
The art is beautiful - colorful and several with the feel of watercolor paintings. Some anime-style, some in a more realistic style. I didn't find it as imaginative as I'd hoped, though. Most of the art doesn't tell a story, but rather just has a traditionally beautiful mermaid looking beguilingly at the viewer or smiling at a boyfriend or father figure. There were some interesting variations: a few pictures that show more aquatic-looking mermaids (upper bodies with gills, scales, barnacles) and some mermaid mothers with mer-babies. One mer-baby is inside a translucent egg, playing on the idea of mermaids as fish.
I'm sure most tween girls will love this. When I was twelve, I probably would have only wanted pretty pictures of mermaids with long flowing hair, and this book delivers.
February 5, 2019
I loved all the pictures in here. It helped me picture what some of my characters might look like. However, I wished it would have gone deeper into the mythology of mermaids. It touched briefly on how the myths of mermaids originated in different cultures, but I was hoping it would go more in depth. It's a fun light read, and it may spark an idea or two for a new mermaid story, but if you're wanting more research on mermaids this isn't the book for that.
April 16, 2020
A beautifully layed out book with many styles of mermaid artwork,some artists I definitely want to investigate further!
A good catchall of mermaid lore and mermaids of the world. I wish it had gone deeper and been longer on some subjects, it's more like bitesize paragraphs that leave you wanting more. But I did enjoy what was offered. A perfect beginner guide I'd say and no pictures were inappropriate for younger viewers.
A good catchall of mermaid lore and mermaids of the world. I wish it had gone deeper and been longer on some subjects, it's more like bitesize paragraphs that leave you wanting more. But I did enjoy what was offered. A perfect beginner guide I'd say and no pictures were inappropriate for younger viewers.
February 19, 2019
This book was amazing.
It provided interesting facts about mermaids and some of the lore. It provided us with some tv and movies on mermaids. It talked about songs and pop singers who personify mermaids.
Most importantly the book had some stunning mermaid art. They were eye catching and just added to the whole feel of the book.
It provided interesting facts about mermaids and some of the lore. It provided us with some tv and movies on mermaids. It talked about songs and pop singers who personify mermaids.
Most importantly the book had some stunning mermaid art. They were eye catching and just added to the whole feel of the book.
August 22, 2022
The artwork was beautiful, though I did feel like there was too much from one artist when there is SO much beautiful mermaid artwork out there. The actual information about mermaids was interesting too. But it just wasn't as impactful as I thought it was going to be, which is sad because I love mermaids and other such things.
July 2, 2020
I got the book for the artworks. Most of the artworks are beautiful, some are traditional paintings, some are digital art. In terms of info about mermaids, I agree with the other reviews, it is very basic, and it's a quick read.
January 8, 2019
Learned some new facts!!!
February 8, 2019
The artwork is beautiful!
May 22, 2019
The book could have gone in more details, but they had a wide variety of sources that I appreciated. It inspired me on some writing of my own.
January 31, 2020
A fairly decent overview of mermaids, their history and their various appearances in different mediums. Wonderful illustrations - the pictures are really what make this book.
March 17, 2020
This was a cute book about the history of mermaids. The illustrations are beautiful and it gives a good overview of the history of mermaids.
September 14, 2020
A good basic summery or mermaids in legend, media and modern day. It doesn't go very in-depth about the actual myths of mermaids, but again, it is a good general summery of mermaid information.
May 19, 2022
A really fun book for those interested in mermaids/sirens! This book went into great detail discussing the perceived folklore/stories/history of different cultures and countries of mermaids. It was filled with some great information and was really nicely presented with lots of illustrations and photo's. Highly recommend.
August 27, 2020
I mostly grabbed this book for the art.
I love anything mer-based.
I guess I get that from my mother.
Anyway, the information was fine, not a lot, but the poetry and quotes were a nice touch.
I would have loved to have learned more.
I love anything mer-based.
I guess I get that from my mother.
Anyway, the information was fine, not a lot, but the poetry and quotes were a nice touch.
I would have loved to have learned more.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews