Picture Books

Brett, Jan. The Mermaid. Set in the ocean off Japan, this retelling of Goldilocks and the Three Bears stars Kiniro, a mermaid, who finds a baby  octopus's breakfast, chair, and bed just right.  

Campbell, K. G.  The Mermaid and the Shoe. Each of King Neptune's fifty mermaid daughters boasts a special talent, except for little Minnow, who seems to be good only at asking questions. When she finds a strange object, Minnow follows her questions to a wondrous place   and finds answers.  

Greenberg, Melanie Hope. Mermaids on Parade. A young girl participates in Coney Island’s Mermaid Parade to celebrate the opening of the ocean during the summer solstice.  

Kann, Victoria. Aqualicious. At the beach, Pinkalicious and her brother help a tiny mermaid, a merminnie, go back home.  

O’Connor, Jane. Fancy Nancy and the Mermaid Ballet. Nancy makes the best of not dancing as the lead mermaid in her ballet school's Deep Sea Dances show, but she becomes jealous when her best friend gets a better role than hers.  

Wallace, Adam. How to Catch a Mermaid. Two children set out catch a mermaid, but she manages to escape all their traps.  

Wetzel, Joanne Stewart. Mermaid School. Molly enjoys her first day at Mermaid School, where she makes new friends, learns new things, and hears stories about children with no tails!  

Fast and Fun

Dadey, Debbie. Trouble at Trident Academy. (Mermaid Tales #1) Mermaids Shelly and Echo are excited to begin third grade at the prestigious Trident Academy, but snooty Pearl, jokester Rocky, brilliant Kiki, grumpy Mr. Fangtooth, and an argument over their first project challenge the best friends.  

Funke, Cornelia. Lilly and Fin: A Mermaid’s Tale. Two merpups named Lilly and Fin must escape from the clutches of the humans who want to add them to their collection of rare aquatic creatures.  

Hapka, Cathy. Mermaids in the Backyard. When her family moves from Chicago to an island in South Carolina, Lindy is sure she will be unhappy until she makes a surprising discovery in the backyard of their beach house.  

Rodda, Emily. The Third Wish. (Fairy Realm #3) When her home is threatened by fire, Jessie returns to the magical world of the realm and visits the mermaids of Under -Sea to search for a wish-stone.  

Thorpe, Kiki. Under the Lagoon. (Disney Fairies Never Girls #13) The fairies in Never Land think that mermaids are nothing but trouble. When Gabby befriends a mermaid, Kate, Mia, and Lainey warn her to stay away, but Gabby doesn't want to lose her new friend.  

Fiction

Andersen, Hans Christian.  The Little Mermaid. A little sea princess, longing to be human, trades her mermaid’s tail for legs, hoping to win the love of a prince and earn an immortal soul for herself.  

Dunmore, Helen.  Ingo. As they search for their missing father near their Cornwall home, a brother and sister learn about their family’s connection to the undersea world of Ingo. Sequel: The Tide Knot.  

Kessler, Liz.  The Tail of Emily Windsnap. (Emily Windsnap #1) After finally convincing her mother that she should take swimming lessons, twelveyear-old Emily discovers a terrible and wonderful secret about herself that opens up a whole new world.  

Lassky, Kathryn. Hannah. (Daughters of the Sea #1) Hannah grew up in an orphanage, but now is a humble maid of a wealthy family. Through a series of special encounters, she learns that she must make a choice between the land and the sea.  

Mylnowski, Sarah. Sink or Swim. (Whatever After #3) Once again, Abby and her brother Jonah go through the magic mirror in their basement, and this time they find themselves interfering in the story of The Little Mermaid and needing to set things right, making sure everyone has a happy ending.  

Pounder, Sibeal. Bad Mermaids Make Waves. Mermaids Beattie, Mimi, and Zelda are summoned back from a summer on land to save their underwater world from some seriously bad mermaids.  

Rylant, Cynthia.  The Islander. Living with his grandfather on an island off British Columbia, orphaned ten-year-old Daniel feels deep loneliness until the night he meets a mermaid whose identity he tries to learn. 

Selfors, Suzanne. Fairy Tail Ending. (Ever After High: A School Story #6) Meeshell is not an ordinary mermaid princess. Someday, when she is older, she will leave her sea kingdom and live happily ever after on land with her prince. Can Meeshell fit in at Ever After High, or will she stand out like a fish out of water?  

Selfors, Suzanne. To Catch a Mermaid. When a twelve year old finds a wish granting baby mermaid, he takes her home with surprising results.   

Junior High Fiction

Donnelly, Jennifer. Deep Blue. (WaterFire Saga #1) After an ancient evil returns, a mermaid named Serafina searches for five other mermaid heroines, who are scattered across the six seas, to save their hidden world.   

Junior High Graphic Novel

Napoli, Donna Jo. Fish Girl. Fish Girl, a young mermaid living in a boardwalk aquarium, has never interacted with anyone beyond the walls of her tank until a chance encounter with an ordinary girl named Livia. Their growing friendship inspires Fish Girl's longing for freedom.  

Nonfiction

398 SAN. San Souci, Robert D.  Nicholas Pipe.  Nicholas Pipe, a merman, casts a spell so that he can live on land, where he falls in love with a fisherman's daughter, and the two must defy both her father and the seafolk in order to stay together.  

398 SAN. San Souci, Robert D.  Sukey and the Mermaid.  Unhappy with her life at home, Sukey receives kindness and wealth from Mama Jo the mermaid.  

398 MER. Mermaid Tales from Around the World.   A collection of twelve mermaid tales from around the world, featuring such sources as France, Greece, and North Africa.  

398.21 KNU. Mermaids and Mermen. This book discusses the fantastical creatures that are half human and half fish, covering various related tales about merfolk taking human visitors to their underwater cities and singing to sailors, causing them to drown at sea.  

398.21 OLI. Oliver, Narelle. Mermaids Most Amazing. A beautifully illustrated book that explores the history and legends of mermaids throughout the ages. 

811.54 LAR. Larios, Julie Hofstrand.  Imaginary Menagerie: A Book of Curious Creatures: Poems.   A collection of poems that describe mythical creatures, including mermaids.