Mei’s Mermaid Mission Review

 

Writer: Crystal Z. Lee

Artist: Allie Su

Publisher: Balestier Press

Hardcover: $21.50

Paperback: $13.99

Release Date: February 25, 2024

 

Mei is hanging out with Unicorn Fish in the Sea Of Stars when a Paper Nautilus brings her an urgent message. Pirate Polymer is causing trouble in the East Sea. Can Mei help Princess Hwangok prevent further damage to sea life and their ocean environment? Let’s swim into Mei’s Mermaid Mission and find out!

 

Story

Princess Hwangok is the head of the Mermaids International Rescue Alliance. She’s always on the alert for people causing harm to her undersea friends. If Princess Hwangok needs help, Mei wants to assist her. After consulting her map, Mei waves goodbye to the pink Unicorn Fish and sets out on her ecological rescue mission.

 

Saving the seas isn’t a job for just one or two mermaids. As Mei swims, she visits her friends in MIRA and requests their help. Mei visits extraordinary places, such as the immense Cox's Bazar Beach and Belum-Temengor, a 130-million-year-old rain forest. She chats with a Manta Ray and interacts with Dugongs, close relatives of the Manatees, in Mei’s Mermaid Mission. She learns about noteworthy people from maritime history, such as Madame Ching, a woman who commanded hundreds of ships in her pirate fleet. And Mei sees exotic sights, such as the dragon boats that sail around Lamma Island.

 

As Mei travels from Taiwan to South Korea, the mermaid encounters hazards to sea life caused by Humans and climate change. Once Mei and her friends reach the East Sea, they must convince Pirate Polymer to stop dumping his trash wherever he feels like it. It won't be easy. Teaching people how to protect our planet never is. But Mei cares about all her friends in the sea, so she'll find a way in Mei's Mermaid Mission. As Princess Hwangok says, “Anyone can be a hero if they have a heart for others.”

 

 

 

Art

Have you ever visited a tropical paradise like Hawaii and snorkeled off a boat or the beach? If so, you've likely seen beautiful fish like orange and white clownfish, multicolored Butterflyfish, yellow and white Moorish Idols, and the iridescent Parrotfish. But how many people have swum with Sea Horses, Humpback Dolphins, or a Blue Whale?

 

Annie Su imbues sea creatures with personality in Mei’s Mermaid Mission. A Paper Nautilus clutches a rolled-up note. Dugongs wave at the beach, nuzzle Mei, and frolic together. A Giant Pacific Octopus hugs a smiling Hanyeo as she dives off the shores of Jeju Island.  

 

 

 

Mei's Mermaid Mission also dramatizes the dangers sea life faces. A Chinese White Dolphin gets entangled in fishing gear. A whale shark grows sick from eating plastic. And a Manta Ray grows sad that a toxic oil spill is destroying its home. Thankfully, the MIRA team responds to Princess Hwangok’s plea. The mermaids dress in beautiful costumes that celebrate the traditions of the Asia Pacific islands. But can Mei and her friends convince Pirate Polymer, standing on the top deck of a ship adorned with skull-and-crossbones sails, to stop dropping his trash bags into their home?

 

Crystal Z. Lee completes her story with an essay about the ethnic history, endangered animals, and ecological threats that inspired her to write Mei's Mermaid Mission. She follows this with an Animal Glossary, a list of Cultural, Historical, and Mythological References, and bios on her and Annie Su. Thanks to Henry Roi PR, Blackberry Book Tours, Balestier Press, and author Crystal Z. Lee for providing a hardcover copy of this impressive book for review.

 

 

 

Final Thoughts

Crystal Z. Lee's story reminded me of the endangered status of the animals featured in her story. I enjoyed learning about a region I'd like to visit. She even introduced me to a rare land mammal known as an Asian Unicorn. It's so fluffy!

 

Mei’s Mermaid Mission is a fun and informative book that will teach readers about our world and remind us that it’s worth protecting. 

 

Rating: 10/10 

 

 

Crystal Z. Lee grew up in a bilingual household in Taiwan and in California. She is an avid traveler and has visited over thirteen countries in Asia. Her favorite travel memories include hiking the forests of Borneo, boating in Phuket, cruising down the Yangtze River, chasing butterflies in Taiwan, attending literary festivals in Hong Kong, and visiting family in Singapore. Crystal is the author of children's books A Unicorn Named Rin and Kai the Dancing Butterfly. Her poetry was recently included in the UK anthology, Tabula Rasa. She is also the author of a novel, Love and Other Moods.

 

About the Illustrator:

Allie Su was born and raised in a village in Yunlin county, Taiwan. She attended Nanhua University in Chiayi city, majoring in Visual Arts. Allie once lived in Korea for some time, volunteering in the area of animal protection. She loves kimchi, Korean saunas, Incheon's snowy winters, and taking boat rides to Yeouido. She believes in bringing joy to people through art. Allie has worked as a children's art teacher and a professional illustrator. She also illustrated a picture book about Taiwan, Kai the Dancing Butterfly.

Mei's Mermaid Mission is available on Amazon and all fine booksellers.

https://www.crystalzleeauthor.com

https://www.instagram.com/crystal.z.lee

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20927312.Crystal_Z_Lee