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Table of Contents
About The Book
Echo is thrilled to find a human object in this Mermaid Tales adventure, but will sibling rivalry keep her from appreciating her prize?
Echo is dogfish tired of having to share everything with her bossy big sister, Crystal. So she’s extra excited when she stumbles upon a shiny human object near her shell. Finally, something of her very own!
Echo is obsessed with people, so she’s very curious as to what her fin-tastic human find might be. Could it be something totally wavy, like a music-making machine? What if it’s something that could allow her to actually talk to humans?
Before she can find out, Crystal swipes the object, claiming she found it first! Echo is steaming mad. After the mergirls duke it out in a messy tug of war, their mother takes the object away. “You’ll get this back when you can learn to get along,” she tells them. But that’s easier said than done. How far is Echo willing to go to get her precious human object back?
Echo is dogfish tired of having to share everything with her bossy big sister, Crystal. So she’s extra excited when she stumbles upon a shiny human object near her shell. Finally, something of her very own!
Echo is obsessed with people, so she’s very curious as to what her fin-tastic human find might be. Could it be something totally wavy, like a music-making machine? What if it’s something that could allow her to actually talk to humans?
Before she can find out, Crystal swipes the object, claiming she found it first! Echo is steaming mad. After the mergirls duke it out in a messy tug of war, their mother takes the object away. “You’ll get this back when you can learn to get along,” she tells them. But that’s easier said than done. How far is Echo willing to go to get her precious human object back?
Excerpt
A Tale of Two Sisters
Splat!
“Five arms stretch out wide
No brains; no blood; velvety
Starfish cling to life.”
“I really like that,” Kiki Coral told her teacher.
“It’s a haiku,” Mrs. Karp explained. “Five claps for the first line, then seven, then five for the last line.”
“Boring,” Pearl Swamp whispered under her breath. Mrs. Karp peered through her tiny glasses at Pearl, who slid down in her seat.
“Do you think the Rays’ music is boring?” Mrs. Karp asked Pearl.
Pearl sat up straight and tossed her long blond hair behind her shoulder. “Of course not!” The Rays were the most famous boy band in the entire ocean. They had sung at Pearl’s last birthday party.
“Did you know that many of the Rays’ songs are poems?” Mrs. Karp said. “Of course, they are different from a haiku.”
“Really?” asked Shelly Siren. Shelly was the only student at Trident Academy who had actually performed with the Rays at Pearl’s party. When their backup singer had gotten sick, Shelly had filled in for her.
Mrs. Karp nodded and surprised her entire third-grade class by singing one of the Rays’ songs.
“Shark, the sharpnose sevengill, lived near to me.
We swam together every day
And became the best of friends.
Then someone told Shark he should eat me.
And now I miss him terribly
But our friendship had to end.
Shark, the sharpnose sevengill, lived near to me.
I’ll always treasure our friendship
And hope someday he’ll see
That sharks and merfolks can be friends.
One day it will be.
But until that day, I guess I’ll say
Shark, I miss you still.”
Pearl rolled her eyes, but most of the class tapped their tails in time to Mrs. Karp’s voice. When she finished, everyone clapped except Pearl.
“That was totally amazing!” Echo Reef said.
Mrs. Karp grinned and took a little bow. “What do you think about poems now?” she asked Pearl.
Pearl shrugged. “I guess some poems are pretty wavy.”
“I think poems should be silly,” Rocky Ridge said before singing to the class in a funny voice:
“Food fights can be fun.
Especially at lunchtime.
Splat! Right in the face!”
Rocky acted out the splat and fell onto the floor.
Mrs. Karp hid her smile behind her hand, but Kiki couldn’t help laughing just a little. “That was very creative,” Mrs. Karp told Rocky, “but I hope you don’t plan to have a real food fight.”
Rocky shook his head, but Kiki noticed the grin on his face. Kiki knew Rocky would love to throw anything, especially food.
“You’ve given me a wonderful idea,” Mrs. Karp told Rocky. “Everyone will write their own poem for our next class assignment. It can be a haiku or a song or whatever type you’d like. We’ll talk about other kinds of poems in class tomorrow.”
Pearl frowned at Rocky. “Thanks a lot!” she snapped. “More homework!”
Splat!
“Five arms stretch out wide
No brains; no blood; velvety
Starfish cling to life.”
“I really like that,” Kiki Coral told her teacher.
“It’s a haiku,” Mrs. Karp explained. “Five claps for the first line, then seven, then five for the last line.”
“Boring,” Pearl Swamp whispered under her breath. Mrs. Karp peered through her tiny glasses at Pearl, who slid down in her seat.
“Do you think the Rays’ music is boring?” Mrs. Karp asked Pearl.
Pearl sat up straight and tossed her long blond hair behind her shoulder. “Of course not!” The Rays were the most famous boy band in the entire ocean. They had sung at Pearl’s last birthday party.
“Did you know that many of the Rays’ songs are poems?” Mrs. Karp said. “Of course, they are different from a haiku.”
“Really?” asked Shelly Siren. Shelly was the only student at Trident Academy who had actually performed with the Rays at Pearl’s party. When their backup singer had gotten sick, Shelly had filled in for her.
Mrs. Karp nodded and surprised her entire third-grade class by singing one of the Rays’ songs.
“Shark, the sharpnose sevengill, lived near to me.
We swam together every day
And became the best of friends.
Then someone told Shark he should eat me.
And now I miss him terribly
But our friendship had to end.
Shark, the sharpnose sevengill, lived near to me.
I’ll always treasure our friendship
And hope someday he’ll see
That sharks and merfolks can be friends.
One day it will be.
But until that day, I guess I’ll say
Shark, I miss you still.”
Pearl rolled her eyes, but most of the class tapped their tails in time to Mrs. Karp’s voice. When she finished, everyone clapped except Pearl.
“That was totally amazing!” Echo Reef said.
Mrs. Karp grinned and took a little bow. “What do you think about poems now?” she asked Pearl.
Pearl shrugged. “I guess some poems are pretty wavy.”
“I think poems should be silly,” Rocky Ridge said before singing to the class in a funny voice:
“Food fights can be fun.
Especially at lunchtime.
Splat! Right in the face!”
Rocky acted out the splat and fell onto the floor.
Mrs. Karp hid her smile behind her hand, but Kiki couldn’t help laughing just a little. “That was very creative,” Mrs. Karp told Rocky, “but I hope you don’t plan to have a real food fight.”
Rocky shook his head, but Kiki noticed the grin on his face. Kiki knew Rocky would love to throw anything, especially food.
“You’ve given me a wonderful idea,” Mrs. Karp told Rocky. “Everyone will write their own poem for our next class assignment. It can be a haiku or a song or whatever type you’d like. We’ll talk about other kinds of poems in class tomorrow.”
Pearl frowned at Rocky. “Thanks a lot!” she snapped. “More homework!”
About The Author
Debbie Dadey
Debbie Dadey is an award-winning children’s book author who has written more than 150 books. She is best known for her series The Adventures of the Bailey School Kids, written with Marcia Thornton Jones. Debbie lives with her husband, her children, and three dogs in Sevierville, Tennessee.
About The Illustrator
Tatevik Avakyan has illustrated many books for children, including the Mermaid Tales series.
Product Details
- Publisher: Aladdin (March 1, 2015)
- Length: 128 pages
- ISBN13: 9781481402576
- Ages: 6 - 9
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- Book Cover Image (jpg): A Tale of Two Sisters Trade Paperback 9781481402576
- Author Photo (jpg): Debbie Dadey Debbie Dadey(0.1 MB)
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