She shares in Julian’s enthusiasm by taking him to the mermaid parade. Love gives adult readers a role model in Abuela, who kindly supports Julian and helps him to act on his dreams of becoming a mermaid. It should come as no surprise when children feel trapped by adult expectations. Often adults suppress children’s imagination and creative play by insisting that they conform to gender norms.

On a more sobering note, the book leads the adult reader to reflect on one’s own positionality and comfort level with nonconforming play. Love’s exquisitely rendered illustrations give the reader that opportunity to share this wonderment and joy. Although the book reaches out to children who might be gender nonconforming, it also addresses the wonderment of childhood and the joy children feel when they are able to act through their imagination. In fact, she hands him a string of pearls to place around his neck and takes him to join the other mermaids in New York’s Annual Mermaid Parade.ĭEBORAH: Author-illustrator Jessica Love captures the intriguing qualities of childhood imagination and the human spirit that naturalizes this world of make-believe. When Abuela sees him, she is noticeably surprised but composed. Before Abuela returns from her bath, he looks in the mirror and continues his transformation with her make-up. While Abuela leaves Julian alone for a moment to take her bath, Julian’s imagination allows him to transform into a mermaid using fern clippings and flowers taken from Abuela’s vase to make a headdress and Abuela’s long white drapes for his mermaid tail. The illustrations of his transformation beautifully depict his daydream.

When Julian and Abuela arrive home, he daydreams about being a mermaid. Julian sees three beautiful mermaids from his subway seat, and he is mesmerized by their dress, accoutrements and amazing fishtails. It began one day after he and his abuela take the subway home from the pool. Julian Is a Mermaid is a wonderfully imaginative story of a young Afro-Latinx boy who realizes he loves mermaids so much that he decides to be one.

Julian mermaid