Book review • Book review ~ The Tail of Emily Windsnap – Liz Kessler

Children’s stories are magical; they have the ability to capture a young mind and transport it to a world that invites creativity and sparks the imagination. “The Tail of Emily Windsnap” is one of those books. Twelve-year-old Emily is desperate to take swimming lessons. Unbeknownst to her, there is a reason the water calls to her. Her mother has resisted until now, when swimming lessons are offered to her seventh grade class. Emily excitedly puts on her swimsuit and ignores the beginners group and jumps right in! Where most first-time swimmers panic as their head is submerged, Emily feels calm and surprisingly calm – that is, until her legs start to go numb! Frenzied, she quickly gets out and the sensation disappears.

That night she goes to the ocean and slips into the water to further explore what is happening to her. The numbing sensation returns to her legs but fighting down her fear, Emily remains in the water to discover her legs turn into a tail! Emily is a mermaid!

Emily swims all night and comes across a young mermaid just like her, Shona, who becomes her best friend. Emily attends a real mermaid school where she learns the rules of interaction between mer-people and humans – including a scandal that shook up the mer-world and led to the imprisonment of a mer-man named Jake Windsnap! Their curiosity in full-mode, Emily and Shona dig a little deeper through records and discover that Jake may in fact be Emily’s long lost father, who is now imprisoned in a remote location. Determined to discover the truth, Emily sets out to find her father; but can she do so before she’s caught by the guards of Neptune, ruler of the mer-people?

Beautifully written, Liz Kessler delivers a children’s story that will also touch adults. “The Tail of Emily Windsnap” conveys the power of love, the importance of friendship and how to be brave and stand up to bullies. As the first book of a New York Times Best-Selling series, “The Tail of Emily Windsnap” is sure to be a hit with children and parents.

Get your copy at The bookYard today!