Aquamarine
(eAudiobook)

Best-selling author Alice Hoffman's luminous tale of nostalgia and enchantment, for readers both young and old. Twelve-year-old best friends Hailey and Claire are spending their last summer together when they discover something at the bottom of the murky pool at the Capri Beach Club. There, among the seaweed and jellyfish that a summer storm has blown in from the ocean, is a mysterious and beautiful creature with a sharp tongue and a broken heart -- a mermaid named Aquamarine.As her six sisters beckon her to return to the sea, Aquamarine stubbornly persists in her search for love on land. But as she starts to fade in the burning August sun, a rescue must begin.On the edge of growing up, during a summer that is the hottest on record, Hailey and Claire learn that life can take an unpredictable course, that friendship is forever, and that magic can be found in the most unexpected places.Alice Hoffman is the author of twelve acclaimed and bestselling novels which have been published in more than 20 languages, including Illumination Night, At Risk, Turtle Moon, Practical Magic, which was released as a major motion picture, Here on Earth, an Oprah's Book Club Selection, and most recently, The River King. Her collection of interconnected stories, Local Girls, was chosen by School Library Journal as one of the first best adult books for young readers. A gossamer fable written by an adult author who illustrates some of the pitfalls awaiting those unused to writing for young people. Twelve-year-olds Hailey and Claire have been best friends since they were born. But now Claire is moving from next door to Florida, and the girls have only the summer together. They spend their days at the decrepit Capri Beach Club, which has fallen on hard times and has only Raymond, the snack shop clerk, to keep them in lemonade. In the old murky pool where Hailey learned to swim, they find a mermaid named Aquamarine, blue and opalescent and surly as heck. She needs to get back to saltwater, but instead she falls in love with Raymond,a nd the girls contrive to give her one evening with him before they have to take her back to sea. The Capri is bulldoze, Claire and her grandparents move to Florida, and Raymond goes off to college, but that's not the end of the story, quite. An arch tone and this-is-good-for-you air might irritate an alert reader, but others might just take the fantasy for what it's worth and enjoy.---Kirkus Reviews, Feb. 15, 2001Hailey and Claire along with Raymond the snack-counter guy are the only people who spend time at the Capri Beach Club, which has fallen on hard times. The best friends are ruefully counting down the days until Claire moves to Florida with her grandparents. When a storm washes a bad-mannered mermaid named Aquamarine into the club Pool, she falls in love with Raymond and begs the girls to help her win his heart. They agree, on the condition that she returns to the sea after her "date" with him. This book has some wonderful elements--there is some vivid imagery, especially when it comes to the setting, with its waves of heat and air of decay. There are also some lovely balances between the girls as they gradually exchange roles as either brave or clever, and they seem to take turns accepting the girl who will inevitably move in next door. Unfortunately, the narration puts too much space between readers and the story, leaving them unengaged. There is also the more practical question of why the beach club is still open even though Claire and Hailey are the only two who come each day. Finally, one of the things that Hoffman seems to do best in her adult novels is leisurely create characters that can walk right out of the story. She doesn't have the time or space here to do that and the result, sadly, is a very boring mermaid and two dull girls suffering from separation anxiety.-Patricia A. Dollisch, DeK