Sea Sirens

This richly illustrated, #ownvoices middle grade graphic novel draws on Vietnamese folk and fairy tales and a long-lost mermaid story, The Sea Fairies by L. Frank Baum. The underwater adventures star Trot, a California girl who loves to surf, her one-eyed, pirate-themed tabby cat, Cap'n Bill, Trot's Grandpa, who is forgetful and chronically gets lost, and fantastically beautiful, Art Nouveau-clothed mermaids who also happen to be ferocious warriors. One fateful day, Trot has a surfing accident while her Grandpa naps at home, and splashes into a royal battle between two undersea kingdoms, serpents vs. the Sea Sirens led by Princess Clia. By luck Cap'n Bill, who surfs with Trot and was sinking fast, takes a last swipe with his last hissing breath at the snakes attacking the sirens and saves the day. The story moves quickly from there, from land to sea and back again, traveling through evocative blue to turquoise to dark black ocean settings as Trot uncovers more mysteries exploring the Sea Sirens' kingdom and the mysterious King of Serpents. The illustrations throughout are beautifully drawn, elegantly ornate, with hairstyles and fashions in the Asian undersea kingdom that Gustav Klimt would recognize. Young readers grades 3 and up will definitely clamour for more adventures with Trot and Cap'n Bill!