Of Salt and Shore by Annet Schaap - ADVISABLE

Of Salt and Shore by Annet Schaap, translated from Dutch by Laura Watkinson, 336 pages. Charlesbridge, September 2020. $17

Content: G

BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ADVISABLE

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

Lampie forgot to get more matches to light their lighthouse and during the storm a shipwrecked. Lampie and her father are held responsible. Lampie is sent to the home of local admiral as an indentured servant for the next seven years and unknown to her, Lampie’s father is imprisoned in the lighthouse, even though with one missing leg he has a hard time dragging himself up and down the stairs every day. Lampie has much to occupy her at the mansion – especially the rumors of a monster living somewhere in the building. The truth is even stranger than she could have imagined!

The cover of the book says “What if the Little Mermaid left a child…”, so now you know a bit about where this is going.  I found myself reading as fast as I could to the end.  Schaap introduces just enough as you go along to keep your interest.  It reads like an old-fashioned tale, a familiar friend. I think this is a good candidate for a class read aloud in 4^th – 6^th grade. Hand sell this for students who love old-fashioned stories or place it in a display with other retold fairytales.

Cindy, Library Teacher, MLS