Mermaid Vera and octo-kid Beaker star in this early reader series from Newbery honoree and Stonewall Award winner Kyle Lukoff! In their undersea town of Tidal Grove, they explore a sunken ship, help Beaker solve the octopus problem of helping his legs to get along, and come up with a creative solution when Beaker and some friends get stuck in a shipwreck. These gentle adventures are full of humor, tidbits of undersea facts (provided by Vera and Beaker’s frog-legged teacher, Mr. Burbles), and light messages about friendship across difference, being helpful, and more. Kat Uno’s illustrations are colorful and charming.
Beaker uses they/them pronouns, although this is not part of the plot. Both Vera and Beaker read as Asian; other characters read as Black and White.
