The Good Little Mermaid's Guide to Bedtime

by Eija Sumner, Nici Gregory (Illustrator)

Overview

This little mermaid is too FIERCE and SCARY and FEROCIOUS to follow The Good Little Mermaid's Guide to Bedtime . . . well, except the part about snuggling her shark stuffie. A hilarious picture book for kids ages 3 to 7 who are experts at resisting sleep.

Once upon an evening, a good little mermaid begins to get ready for bed.
Once upon? No. Not once upon. I know what that means. And I'm NOT a good little mermaid. I am a PREDATOR!

Thus begins our story of a little mermaid who is anything but good.
Sleep? Sleep is for guppies! This little mermaid is a TERROR of the DEEP.

Cleaning up and putting toys away? This little mermaid doesn't need TOYS. The ocean is her playground, and everything in it is afraid of HER.

Brushing her teeth and flossing? Never! Well . . . maybe a little bit so they gleam like RAZOR-SHARP BLADES.

Cleverly told through a back and forth between The Good Little Mermaid's Guide to Bedtime and a mermaid who is resisting bedtime at every turn, this story will delight readers with its hilarious illustrations and adorable but VERY SCARY main character. Will she ever go to sleep? Read on to find out.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780735267893
Publisher:	Tundra
Publication date:	03/05/2024
Pages:	40
Sales rank:	143,618
Product dimensions:	10.30(w) x 9.70(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	3 - 7 Years

About the Author

EIJA SUMNER has an M.F.A. from Hamline University in writing for children and young adults. While a student at Hamline, Eija received the T.A. Barron Fellowship for Excellence in Fantasy Writing, the Anne Tews Schwab Award for Excellence in Critical Writing and the Frances and Kermit Rudolf Scholarship Award. She lives in Idaho with her husband, three children, two cats and one red-eyed bunny.

NICI GREGORY started illustrating whilst still in primary school, drawing in the margins of her exercise books. After studying graphic design in Hamburg, Germany, she went on to work as an in-house illustrator for a marketing firm in Sheffield. When she realized her work in the margins (mostly animals in fancy clothes) continued to be her favorite and best work, she decided to leave the world of marketing for a full-time career in creating animal characters for children. She has never looked back. Nici lives in Sheffield, England.

Editorial Reviews

01/15/2024

A fierce young mermaid rebels against prim behavioral advice in Sumner’s ornery metafictional title. The protagonist’s outrage begins in reaction to the titular volume’s opening line: “Once upon an evening, a good little mermaid begins to get ready for bed.” Responding “I’m not a good little mermaid. I am a predator,” she continues to react ferociously to the parallel text. When the guide notes that “a well-moisturized tail will glisten like the night stars,” she counters, “I AM THE NIGHT. I AM THE DARKNESS.” Gregory’s digital artwork casts the merchild with pink skin, flowing blue-green hair, and eyes that widen menacingly. Seafoam-colored scenes show her preparing to chow down on fish, a young snorkler, and even an entire ship before wishing the audience “SWEET NIGHTMARES.” It’s a story for the bedtime-avoidant whose curmudgeonly antihero truly shines—“LIKE A FLASH OF DANGER.” Background characters are portrayed with various skin tones. Ages 3–7. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

A fierce young mermaid rebels against prim behavioral advice in Sumner’s ornery metafictional title . . . It’s a story for the bedtime-avoidant whose curmudgeonly antihero truly shines[.]" —Publishers Weekly

"A must for mermaid fans, sweet or sassy, and a great bedtime read." —Kirkus Reviews

“This book is utterly original, delightfully dark, and as twisted as a branch of undersea coral. Good night, little mermaid. Sweet nightmares.” —Booklist

"What is there for the girl unimpressed by the glittering, precious creatures populating many Disney movies and much of kid lit? The one who bristles at tiaras . . . who chafes at any effort toward conformity? [The Good Little Mermaid's Guide to Bedtime] offers a heroine meant just for that girl, a little mermaid with razor-sharp teeth, predatory instincts, and zero interest in being good, sweet, or, most importantly, following [an] evening routine. . . . A contrarian delight." —The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

From the Publisher

2024-02-03
This little mermaid is having none of that sweet stuff.

In this tale of metafiction, a scowling, green-haired, light-skinned mermaid takes umbrage at the titular bedtime guide. As she points out, “Sleep is for guppies.” The book-within-a-book begins with a good little mermaid readying herself for bed. The green-haired mermaid looks perturbed: “I’m not a good little mermaid. I am a predator.” And when the book notes that the good little mermaid brushes her teeth before bed, our protagonist is annoyed. “Who cares if my teeth are clean when they can tear through scales and crunch bones?” But she reconsiders so her teeth will “gleam like razor-sharp blades.” The wholesome instruction continues, but our mermaid continues to insist she’s a nightmare of the deep…until the yawns begin. The book-within-a-book ends with “sweet dreams, little mermaid,” to which the protagonist cheekily replies, “Sweet nightmares.” Sumner’s tale will have bedtime-reluctant guppies giggling. The pages of the saccharine-sweet bedtime guide are overlaid onto illustrations of the protagonist and her pufferfish and octopus friends. The artwork also shows that our hero’s not quite as naughty as she presents herself; when the good little mermaid gathers up a favorite toy, our protagonist imagines a giant goblin shark…but as she drifts off, we see her snuggled up with a downright adorable shark stuffie. Gregory’s dynamic, digitally created illustrations have a watercolor look and perfectly convey the humor in the text.

A must for mermaid fans, sweet or sassy, and a great bedtime read. (Picture book. 3-8)

Kirkus Reviews