Horn Book (Wed Aug 01 00:00:00 CDT 2012)

This "guide" invites readers to explore likely spots for mermaid sightings, such as tide pools and rock clusters. Altered color photographs feature seashore settings with cartoonlike pictures of mermaids frolicking and swimming. Although the staged photos are sometimes awkward-looking, young mermaid fans may welcome the book.

Kirkus Reviews

This second Tiptoe Guide (The Tiptoe Guide to Tracking Fairies, 2010) has readers scouring the seashore for mermaids and imagining what their lives must be like. Not a story, but not a guidebook in the traditional sense either, this is more of a fits-and-starts foray into imagination that may leave many of its readers behind. Listen to a conch shell's secrets, search a tidal pool for evidence of baby mermaids, imagine shells as mermaid jewelry, sand dollars as money and ocean plants as food, with crabs scrounging the leftovers. But the author goes beyond readers' reach, as the mermaids play with dolphins, swim amid the coral and carry out their daily activities (primping, napping, shopping) on the ocean floor. While Paquette's first capitalized on the popularity of fairy houses and the easy accessibility of most to the great outdoors, this latest narrows its readership by focusing on the ocean. It further disappoints this limited audience by highlighting beachcombing finds that are relatively rare, if not geographically impossible: perfect sand dollars and conch shells, ocean plants, tide pools--not to mention the warm-enough-for-a-bathing-suit but nonetheless deserted, beach. Letourneau layers her fanciful watercolor mermaids atop beautiful photographs, which gives a jarring feel to the artwork. Further, when the text asks readers, "Can you see any mermaids anywhere?" she makes no effort at hiding them. The glittery cover and promise of mermaids may attract readers initially, but there is little here to lure them for repeated readings. (Picture book. 4-7)

School Library Journal (Sun Jul 01 00:00:00 CDT 2012)

PreS-Gr 1—Charming watercolor-and-ink illustrations combine with a meandering, singsong text in this lovely bedtime book. Lucy can't sleep, even after counting various animals, wiggling her fingers and toes, and scratching her itches. She gets out of bed, puts on a sweater, and amuses herself by looking for her misplaced toys, sliding down the banister, checking out the fridge, having a snack, sitting on the porch swing, hugging her dog, and playing dress up, until finally she is tired enough to "slip into bed, and sleep 'til dawn." Overlook the fact that most young children are not this comfortable or self-sufficient alone late at night; nor are parents likely to sleep through a child's wanderings about the house, not to mention outside. Instead, focus on the warm, cozy flow of the text, which sometimes rhymes and sometimes doesn't, is sometimes busy and other times quiet, and ultimately lures readers into a peaceful, restful place. The artwork is precious in the best sense, starring a pink-faced child whose minimal features consist simply of black dots for eyes and nose, and a red line for a mouth. Cool pastel colors keep the nighttime dark but never scary, not counting when her black dog chases a black squirrel from behind a black tree in the yard. The picture of Lucy cozied up on the porch swing under a harvest moon with a radio playing close by is enough to make anyone want to go to bed. A wonderful book to cuddle up with when it's almost time to sleep.—Teri Markson, Los Angeles Public Library

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