The Tail of Emily Windsnap Paperback – Illustrated, April 10, 2012 by Liz Kessler

Description

Author: Kessler Liz

Brand: Candlewick

Color: Multicolor

Edition: Illustrated

Features:

• Candlewick Press MA

Format: Illustrated

Package Dimensions: 15x193x181

Number Of Pages: 224

Release Date: 10-04-2012

Details: Product Description The New York Times best-selling seriesWith a sure sense of suspense and richly imaginative details, Liz Kessler lures us into a glorious undersea world where mermaids study shipwrecks at school and Neptune rules with an iron trident — an enchanting fantasy about family secrets, loyal friendship, and the convention-defying power of love. Review Pre-teen girls will likely bite at this novel’s tempting bait.—Publishers WeeklyDelightful moments.—School Library JournalLight, imagination-tickling fare ideal for middle-grade girls, with charming ink-wash illustrations scattered throughout.—BooklistMiddle school girls . . . will enjoy the tale.—VOYAThere is no denying the siren-like allure of mermaid stories. . . . Gibb’s spot art has a fluid delicacy that adds much to the watery ambience.—Bulletin of the Center for Children’s BooksLiz Kessler makes a splash with this tightly written, highly imaginative debut.—FamilyFunCharming.—The Wall Street JournalLiz Kessler creates an engaging heroine, full of funny asides and derring-do, and a sparkling, fast-paced story with more plot twists than a mermaid’s flipping tale.—Washington Parent About the Author Liz Kessler lives in England, and has worked as a teacher, journalist, and editorial consultant. She says she first knew she wanted to become a writer at the age of nine, when she had a poem published in a local newspaper. The Tail of Emily Windsnap, her first children’s book, grew out of a poem she wrote about a mermaid. Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved. As I swam around the rocks at the end of the bay, the water became clearer and softer. It was like switching from grainy black-and-white film into color. The fat gray fish were replaced by stripy yellow-and-blue ones with floppy silver tails, long thin green ones with spiky antennae and angry mouths, orange ones with spotted black fins—-all darting purposefully around me. Every now and then, I swam across a shallow sandy stretch. Wispy little sticklike creatures as thin as paper wriggled along beneath me, almost see-through against the sand. Then the water would suddenly get colder and deeper as I went over a rocky part. I swished myself across these carefully. They were covered in prickly black sea urchins, and I wouldn’t be thrilled to get one of those stuck on my tail.Soon the water got warmer again as I came to another shallow part. I was getting tired. I came up for fresh air and realized I was miles from home; farther away than I’d ever been on my own. I tried to flick myself along, but my tail flapped lazily and started to ache. Eventually, I made it to a big, smooth rock with a low shelf. I pulled myself out of the water, my tail resting on some pebbles in the sea. A minute later, it went numb. I wiggled my toes and shivered as I watched my legs come back. That part was still really creepy!Sitting back against a larger rock, I caught my breath. Then I heard something. Like singing, but without words. The wet rocks shimmered in the moonlight, but there was no one around. Had I imagined it? The water lapped against the pebbles, making them jangle as it sucked its breath away from the shore. There it was again—-the singing.Where was it coming from? I clambered up a jagged rock and looked down the other side. That’s when I saw her. I rubbed my eyes. Surely it couldn’t be . . . but it was! It was a mermaid! A real one! The kind you read about in kids’ stories. Long blond hair all the way down her back, which she was brushing while she sang. She was perched on the edge of a rock, shuffling a bit as though she were trying to get comfortable. Her tail was longer and thinner than mine. Silvery green and shimmering in the moonlight, it flapped against the rock as she sang. She kept singing the same song. When she got to the end, she started again. A couple of times, she was in the middle of a really high part when she stopped and hit her tail with the brush. “Come