MERMAID DREAMS

Like many kids, Meriam doesn’t like to get ready for bed. But is Meriam really like other kids? When her mother tries to comb Meriam’s tangled hair, a shell falls out. Meriam explains she’s been lying in sand at the beach. Then her mother finds a piece of seaweed and Meriam reveals she’s been diving deep, deep, deep beneath the ocean waves to where starfish live, dolphins play and octopuses dance. In fact, Meriam has managed to pluck a pretty pearl from the ocean’s bottom for her mother. As Meriam continues her evening toilette, a little fish jumps out of her ear and a baby crab scuttles from behind her neck. What next? But Meriam is ready for bed, happy that she doesn’t need to clean between her toes. Against an ocean-blue backdrop of floating fish, shells and stars, wondrously whimsical illustrations show the aquatic Meriam with her mass of tangled curls frolicking like a water baby in the sea. And the pictures take the story through to its surprising end. A perfect bedtime “tail.” (Picture book. 3-5)