A queer fairy tale evoking the classic Little Mermaid.
Nen, a merman, lives in a beautiful underwater kingdom, but his heart feels empty. He sings songs into the sky while his father Pelagios pleads with him to stay away from the world above. One day, a lonely fisherman named Ernest hears Nen’s song and sets off in his boat to find the source. They meet—and talk, laugh, and dream together. Nen’s father, though, tells Nen to stay away from humans, who are destroying the oceans.
Nen doesn’t listen, knowing Ernest is different, so Pelagios unleashes a storm that capsizes Ernest’s boat. Nen rescues him and Pelagios sees that the two young men really care for each other. In the last scene, Ernest and Nen hold hands on the rocks by the shore, with the waves splashing up around them, and dream of the future.
This is a gentle and sweet love story that both draws on tradition and gives us something fresh and new. The illustrations are full of sweeping curves and fluid motion, and the full-page spreads showing the ocean depths are particularly captivating.
While Pelagios is initially disapproving, it’s not because his son fell in love with another man. His anti-human prejudices may still prompt readers to ponder issues of bias and acceptance, however, as they also reflect on the need to take better care of our oceans. A recommended title.
Nen and his father are Black; Ernest is White.
Published in the U.K. in 2021 and in the U.S. in 2024.
