Do you believe in mermaids? I’m ambivalent about the matter, but I suppose I am willing to suspend my disbelief. Here’s why: when I was a little girl, I really wanted to have Sea-Monkeys. If you were a kid in the 1960s and liked to read comic books, you’ll remember the images of Sea-Monkey families smiling at you from the comic book ads. I don’t understand why, but I could never convince my mom to send money through the mail so I could have my very own Sea-Monkey family. Oh well, I guess we all have our childhood disappointments.
Anyway, back to mermaids. I can’t prove happy Sea-Monkeys are real (thanks, Mom), so I can’t prove mermaids are real; therefore, I devote this mermaid-themed column to something that may—or may not—exist. I do this because a new, live-action adaptation of The Little Mermaid has been produced by Walt Disney Pictures and is currently showing in theaters. The DVD edition of the film will be released in September, and the library already has it on order for patrons to place holds. While waiting for the DVD release in the fall, be sure to search for “The Little Mermaid” in the library’s catalog. Thanks to Hans Christian Andersen and his authorship of the “The Little Mermaid” fairytale, a variety of books and DVDs are already available to readers and viewers alike.
I hope the Sea-Monkeys and the Little Mermaid are living in harmony in the deep blue sea.
- 5-Minute, The Little Mermaid Stories published by Disney Books. (call number E FIVE)
- The Little Mermaid [DVD] released by Disney in 1989. (call number DVD J LITTLE)
- The Little Mermaid: Make a Splash adapted by Ashley Franklin, illustrated by Paul Kellam. (call number E FRANKLI)
- The Mermaid Handbook: An Alluring Treasury of Literature, Lore, Art, Recipes, and Projects by Carolyn Turgeon. (call number 398.21 TURGEON)
- Usborne Illustrated Stories of Mermaids illustrated by Margarita Kukhtina. (call number J USBORNE)
New at the Library
Fiction
- A Botanist’s Guide to Flowers and Fatality by Kate Khavari.
- Flop Dead Gorgeous by David Rosenfelt.
- Trial by Richard North Patterson.
Nonfiction
- Fire Weather: A True Story from a Hotter World by John Valliant.
- Quietly Hostile: Essays by Samantha Irby.
- The Wisdom of Morrie: Living and Aging Creatively and Joyfully by Morris S. Schwartz.
Children
- City of Secrets: Battle Dragons, 3 by Alex London.
- Tiny T. Rex and the Grand Ta-Da! written by Jonathan Stutzman, illustrated by Jay Fleck.
- Wombats Are Pretty Weird: A [Not So Serious] Guide written and illustrated by Abi Cushman.
This is just a small sampling of the many new titles added each week to the Fort Vancouver Regional Libraries collection. Find more in our catalog, or call 360-906-5000 to reserve titles or find additional listings.
Jan Johnston, Collection Manager
Fort Vancouver Regional Libraries
You can email Jan at readingforfun@fvrl.org.
