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The Mermaid Child Jo Baker 9780099437826 Books

Download As PDF : The Mermaid Child Jo Baker 9780099437826 Books

The Mermaid Child Jo Baker 9780099437826 Books

I picked up this book expecting to encounter a mermaid. This expectation was not entirely met, but I loved this book anyway. It is a beautifully written, richly detailed and compelling tale. Malin lives in a mysterious, hostile world. A child of uncertain age who can barely write her name, Malin cannot remember her mother. Then her father dies, and her grandmother abuses her terribly. She becomes a beautiful adolescent, but she hasn't a shred of self worth. The first small gesture of kindness from a stranger propels her into a long search for her mermaid mother. Her longing for this mythical creature sustains her through many hardships and ordeals. Baker's power of description and originality make this book a wonderful read. I would have liked a less abrupt conclusion, but this is a small criticism. This hero's journey of an unprotected, disadvantaged female is fiercely realistic in spite of the most fabulous of settings. Don't miss it.


Tags : The Mermaid's Child [Jo Baker] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. When Malin’s father dies, he leaves behind only his fantastical story that her mother was a mermaid. Set in an unspecified historical past,Jo Baker,The Mermaid's Child,Arrow,0099437821,Fiction General,General & Literary Fiction,Fiction

The Mermaid Child Jo Baker 9780099437826 Books Reviews

At first glance, this book was a 5-star read. Exciting, with twists and turns; great story-telling covering a nice range of emotions; descriptions that in a cliche' "bring the story to life". It follows the main character, through her own voice, whose gender and age are fuzzy and malleable, and whose future is wholly unpredictable. The minor violence and sexual situations are part of the story and not thrown in to fill an empty plotline. Unfortunately, it came to an abrupt end that had no bearing on the rest of the story. No slight hints during the telling that makes one say, "AHHhhhhh" when the climactic light bulb flashes. The reader assumes the telling is for the reader's benefit, that was a nice turn of events. I've tried to redeem the ending by reflecting on the story for a few days now. Hoping to see reviews that correct me because I thoroughly enjoyed The Mermaid's Child.
This is the first book of Baker's that I have read, but I am a sucker for books about mermaids - always have been! So naturally, this title caught my eye and from its very first pages, it is an absorbing tale. Malin knows next to nothing about her mother - only that her father, a ferryman and fixer of boats, claimed that she was a mermaid who tried to give up her tail to live with them, but returned to the see. His mother, has a much more negative outlook on Malin's mother. Malin soon finds herself setting off from her childhood home in search of more truths - of her mother and perhaps even real mermaids. The perspective is of Malin herself telling the story, but looking back from a distance, which I think in some ways does a disservice to the plot. It's harder to maintain a genuine tension when the reader is confident that Malin will reach an age old enough to look back and put this whole story together!

But what bothers me the most about the book is that it never really feels firmly grounded anywhere. The characters mostly come to life, but the setting is too vague (even in time) for it to feel truly vivid - despite the strength of the imagery of Baker's writing. It has some fairy-tale qualities to it, but it is easy to be pulled out of the action while wondering more about the place and time! But overall it is engaging and definitely keeps the pages turning. I was surprised to learn that this is actually a re-printing of one of Baker's earlier books, so I will probably read some descriptions of her more recent novels and perhaps try one of those next!
Malin grew up not knowing her mother except through the tales her father and grandmother told her; her grandmother never had good things to say, but her father claimed Malin’s mother was a mermaid. After her father’s death, Malin ends up apprenticed to a cruel barkeeper. When she’s given the chance to escape the town where she will always feel out of place, Malin takes it. From there, she travels all over the world with a variety of characters, ultimately in search of the magical creatures she believes are her family.

Jo Baker invites readers into a unique and fascinating world with The Mermaid’s Child. Malin’s journey is not easy for her, and at times the situations she gets into are painful for readers to experience. Malin’s struggle to understand herself is one with which anyone can identify. What really makes this book outstanding is Baker’s lyrical prose, her way of describing everything that Malin experiences so that readers can visualize, while also appealing strongly to the imagination; Malin’s world is both darker and brighter than our own world, more disturbing and more enthralling, more frightening and more beautiful. This is a novel worth getting lost in.

Originally written for San Francisco Book Review.
Oh, the disappointment! The synopsis of The Mermaid's Child sounded fantastic. Mermaids! Circuses! Mythical Inheritances! Intriguing, right? Well, unfortunately, all of that together was just a mish-mash of boring.

I love fantasy novels. Being transported to a mythical world is one of the great pleasures of reading. I had assumed that The Mermaid's Child would do this. But it didn't...not even a little bit. And that has a lot to do with the fact that I was never engaged in The Mermaid's Child. I kept reading in the hopes that I would turn the page and I would magically be invested in...everything; in Malin, in her journey and her quest to find the answers on her mom. But it never happened. After I hit page 150, I decided that I would just grit my teeth, stop expecting anything more from it, and just finish it.

Basically, I found The Mermaid's Child to be incredibly boring, the writing was average, the characterization was average, and the book as a whole was just not something that I feel I should have invested my time in. I say, skip it.

Disclaimer I should also state that The Mermaid's Child isn't a newly released book...or rather this version is a re-release. It was originally released in 2004. There's nothing wrong with that, but I didn't see any mention of it on its 2015 page, so I felt I should say it.
I picked up this book expecting to encounter a mermaid. This expectation was not entirely met, but I loved this book anyway. It is a beautifully written, richly detailed and compelling tale. Malin lives in a mysterious, hostile world. A child of uncertain age who can barely write her name, Malin cannot remember her mother. Then her father dies, and her grandmother abuses her terribly. She becomes a beautiful adolescent, but she hasn't a shred of self worth. The first small gesture of kindness from a stranger propels her into a long search for her mermaid mother. Her longing for this mythical creature sustains her through many hardships and ordeals. Baker's power of description and originality make this book a wonderful read. I would have liked a less abrupt conclusion, but this is a small criticism. This hero's journey of an unprotected, disadvantaged female is fiercely realistic in spite of the most fabulous of settings. Don't miss it.