The Mermaid Twin Sister
Copyright © 2008 www.lynnjosephbooks.com
Summary: This sequel to my book, A Wave in Her Pocket, features Amber and her cousins, listening faithfully to Tantie’s stories, which are supernatural and scary with island folklore creatures like the “duennes” and “la diablesse.” There are six stories in this collection. Some of the stories reflect historical events in Trinidad like the emergence of a new volcanic island off shore.
Reviews:
Sheilamae O'Hara Booklist
Gr. 3-7. Tantie, Amber's great-aunt, passes the traditions and values of their Trinidad culture to the many children in the extended family. She has chosen Amber to be her successor, and it is Amber who faithfully records these stories, giving them the flavor of the Trinidad patois but keeping them completely intelligible to the American reader. Tantie's stories all have a tinge of the supernatural. For example, in the title story, Jill mourns her identical twin sister, Tilly, who, 50 years earlier, defied the prohibition against swimming on Easter and disappeared beneath the waves. Swimming out to save her, Jill, overcome by exhaustion, was saved when Tilly took hold of her hair and towed her to shallow water. Tilly had been turned into a mermaid, but the sea did not recognize Jill as a separate person, believing her to be Tilly's reflection. Tilly remained in the sea, and Jill never aged after that day. These are wonderful tales to read aloud to middle-graders, who will want to reread them to scare themselves all over again.
Kirkus Associates, LP
A sequel to A Wave in Her Pocket (1991, ALA Notable) with six more tales featuring such characters from superstition and folklore as ``de duennes,'' the mischievous spirits of babies who died unbaptized, and ``La Diablesse,'' ghost of the last Arawak on Trinidad: a siren with one cloven hoof who dances men to their deaths. Mixed with these supernatural stories are bits of Trinidadian history and cultural lore, e.g., the origin of ``callaloo'' (a tale resembling ``Stone Soup''). Written in dialect, each chapter contains a story-within-a-story (told by ``Tantie'' to her grand niece) that unhurriedly unfolds to reward patient readers or listeners with its suspense, humor, and folk wisdom. Inviting, neon-bright pastels vibrate in the jacket art; each chapter has its own full-page b&w illustration. (Folklore. 8-12) -- Copyright ©1994, Kirkus Associates, LP
Sheilamae O'Hara Booklist
Gr. 3-7. Tantie, Amber's great-aunt, passes the traditions and values of their Trinidad culture to the many children in the extended family. She has chosen Amber to be her successor, and it is Amber who faithfully records these stories, giving them the flavor of the Trinidad patois but keeping them completely intelligible to the American reader. Tantie's stories all have a tinge of the supernatural. For example, in the title story, Jill mourns her identical twin sister, Tilly, who, 50 years earlier, defied the prohibition against swimming on Easter and disappeared beneath the waves. Swimming out to save her, Jill, overcome by exhaustion, was saved when Tilly took hold of her hair and towed her to shallow water. Tilly had been turned into a mermaid, but the sea did not recognize Jill as a separate person, believing her to be Tilly's reflection. Tilly remained in the sea, and Jill never aged after that day. These are wonderful tales to read aloud to middle-graders, who will want to reread them to scare themselves all over again.
Kirkus Associates, LP
A sequel to A Wave in Her Pocket (1991, ALA Notable) with six more tales featuring such characters from superstition and folklore as ``de duennes,'' the mischievous spirits of babies who died unbaptized, and ``La Diablesse,'' ghost of the last Arawak on Trinidad: a siren with one cloven hoof who dances men to their deaths. Mixed with these supernatural stories are bits of Trinidadian history and cultural lore, e.g., the origin of ``callaloo'' (a tale resembling ``Stone Soup''). Written in dialect, each chapter contains a story-within-a-story (told by ``Tantie'' to her grand niece) that unhurriedly unfolds to reward patient readers or listeners with its suspense, humor, and folk wisdom. Inviting, neon-bright pastels vibrate in the jacket art; each chapter has its own full-page b&w illustration. (Folklore. 8-12) -- Copyright ©1994, Kirkus Associates, LP
Inspiration:
I love mermaids-anything to do with mermaids, and I always wished I were a mermaid. In fact, I believe I might actually be a mermaid caught on land. If I am away from the sea for too many days, I get anxious and unhappy. I must live on an island and now, I live right next to the sea and I swim in it every single day. I can hear the sound of the ocean hitting the rocks all day and night, and when I wake, I see the wide blue sea as soon as I open my eyes. I love to float along underwater staring at the big, conch shells and the coral reefs and gorgeous colorful fish that dart around their underwater world.
It was this love that flowed into the story The Mermaid’s Twin Sister. I was told when I was younger that I could not swim on Good Friday or Easter Sunday or I would turn into a fish. I wanted to be a mermaid so badly that I wished I could go to the beach on one of those days just to see what would happen. My late Auntie Joan, who lived with me and my family for several years while I was attending law school, sat around in the winter months telling me stories of life in Trinidad in the 1940s and 1950s, and some of her stories were fanciful and I recorded them down as best I could. She told me a story about a woman in Trinidad, Mrs. Pascall, who never grew old no matter how many years passed. I incorporated that story with the idea of mermaids and got the forever young twin sister.
After I had written five of the stories in this book, I was thinking and thinking of a sixth story. I tossed about a couple of ideas but none seemed to fit with the book. At the same time, I went with my family to visit my grandmother in Maryland who was very ill and bedridden. She was about 86-years-old and many other family members were at her house, visiting and chatting with each other. I went to sit next to my grandmother’s bed and she, who had always been sprightly and energetic, sat up. And, out of the blue, she began to tell me a story. She said to me, I remember once, when I was a child, an island popped out of the sea near our home in Trinidad. And then, just like that, my grandmother recounted an amazing tale, which I turned into the story I needed to complete The Mermaid’s Twin Sister. I wrote it all down as soon as I got home and called it Colin’s Island and dedicated it to my grandmother. It was astounding the way my grandmother gave me this gift of a story that I needed just before she died.
I love mermaids-anything to do with mermaids, and I always wished I were a mermaid. In fact, I believe I might actually be a mermaid caught on land. If I am away from the sea for too many days, I get anxious and unhappy. I must live on an island and now, I live right next to the sea and I swim in it every single day. I can hear the sound of the ocean hitting the rocks all day and night, and when I wake, I see the wide blue sea as soon as I open my eyes. I love to float along underwater staring at the big, conch shells and the coral reefs and gorgeous colorful fish that dart around their underwater world.
It was this love that flowed into the story The Mermaid’s Twin Sister. I was told when I was younger that I could not swim on Good Friday or Easter Sunday or I would turn into a fish. I wanted to be a mermaid so badly that I wished I could go to the beach on one of those days just to see what would happen. My late Auntie Joan, who lived with me and my family for several years while I was attending law school, sat around in the winter months telling me stories of life in Trinidad in the 1940s and 1950s, and some of her stories were fanciful and I recorded them down as best I could. She told me a story about a woman in Trinidad, Mrs. Pascall, who never grew old no matter how many years passed. I incorporated that story with the idea of mermaids and got the forever young twin sister.
After I had written five of the stories in this book, I was thinking and thinking of a sixth story. I tossed about a couple of ideas but none seemed to fit with the book. At the same time, I went with my family to visit my grandmother in Maryland who was very ill and bedridden. She was about 86-years-old and many other family members were at her house, visiting and chatting with each other. I went to sit next to my grandmother’s bed and she, who had always been sprightly and energetic, sat up. And, out of the blue, she began to tell me a story. She said to me, I remember once, when I was a child, an island popped out of the sea near our home in Trinidad. And then, just like that, my grandmother recounted an amazing tale, which I turned into the story I needed to complete The Mermaid’s Twin Sister. I wrote it all down as soon as I got home and called it Colin’s Island and dedicated it to my grandmother. It was astounding the way my grandmother gave me this gift of a story that I needed just before she died.
