In Geraldo Valério’s newest vibrant and beautiful wordless picture book, a trip to the beach turns into a magical journey under the sea—exploring themes of friendship and the power of imagination.

When a girl and a frog go to the beach to fish, they are frustrated to find that the fish aren’t biting. Instead, they stare into the water and make faces at their reflections. Then, something spectacular happens. The reflections take on lives of their own, transforming into a mermaid with her own pet frog. Surprise gives way to delight as they invite the girl and the frog to enter a stunning underwater world. The new friends swim and play amongst colorful sea creatures until they discover a pair of glowing pearls and turn them into matching necklaces.

Readers are brought along on a joyful aquatic adventure in this third wordless picture book from Geraldo Valério. Each page is a visual treasure trove full of fish and bubbles and other underwater details. Young readers will especially enjoy following the frogs’ adventures in this celebration of friendship and imagination.

Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.7
Use illustrations and details in a story to describe its characters, setting, or events.

Geraldo Valério was born in Brazil, where he received a Bachelor of Arts in Drawing, followed by a Master of Arts at New York University. His many highly acclaimed books include My Book of Birds (described in Booklist as “striking and beautiful”); At the Pond (two starred reviews); Friends (one starred review); Blue Rider (two starred reviews); Turn On the Night (three starred reviews) and The Egg (two starred reviews). His work has been published in many countries, including Canada, the US, Brazil, Portugal, France, the UK and China. Geraldo lives in Toronto.

Geraldo Valério's profile page

Gentle humor and a sense of wonder pervade this joyful aquatic fantasy.

Kirkus Reviews