Author and illustrator Jessica Love has taken the issues facing children in our contemporary society and given them an understanding voice in this tender, heartwarming and oh-so incredibly beautiful picture book.
Julian is a little boy so enchanted with some women he sees dressed as mermaids on a train that he decides he wants to be just like them.
In three exquisitely rendered double-page spreads we see Julian imagining himself as a mermaid. He dives into the ocean, sheds his clothes, grows his hair and swims with a magical school of fish, beautiful and free in who he wants to be.
Back at Nana's house, Julian has an idea. While Nana takes a bath, he adorns himself with flowers and fronds, a lacy curtain and some of Nana's lipstick, transforming himself into a mermaid. There is a brief moment when Nana emerges from the bathroom where Julian, and the reader, anxiously wait to see if her response to his costume will fill him with shame.
This is a book of few words, but every page tells a richly detailed story. It's a wonderful display of diversity, love and acceptance, as well as a celebration of different body types. But the overall message is sweet and subtle and one for every child: Why can't boys love mermaids, or pink, or jewellery, or simply dressing up?
There is no real agenda in this book. Instead, it is simply a glorious exploration of gender fluidity, imagination and the freedom to be oneself.
Title: Julian is a Mermaid
Author/Illustrator: Jessica Love
Publisher: Walker Books, $24.99
Publication Date: 1 June 2018
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9781406380637
For ages: 4+
Type: Picture Book
