Preview
  • Mermaid

  • A Memoir of Resilience
  • By: Eileen Cronin
  • Narrated by: Eileen Cronin
  • Length: 12 hrs and 45 mins
  • 4.0 out of 5 stars (35 ratings)

Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Mermaid

By: Eileen Cronin
Narrated by: Eileen Cronin
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $24.95

Buy for $24.95

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's summary

A gorgeously crafted memoir about resilience, family, and forging your own way, by a woman born without legs.

At the age of three, Eileen Cronin first realized that only she did not have legs. Her boisterous Catholic family accepted her situation as "God's will", treating her no differently than her 10 siblings, as she "squiddled" through their 1960s Cincinnati home. But when starting school, even wearing prosthetics, Cronin had to brave bullying and embarrassing questions. Thanks to her older brother's coaching, she handled a classmate's playground taunts with a smack from her lunchbox. As a teen, thrilled when boys asked her out, she was confused about what sexuality meant for her. She felt most comfortable and happiest relaxing and skinny-dipping with her girlfriends, imagining herself "an elusive mermaid."

The cause of her disability remained taboo, however, even as she looked toward the future and the possibility of her own family. In later years, as her mother battled mental illness and denied having taken the drug thalidomide - known to cause birth defects - Cronin felt apart from her family. After the death of a close brother, she turned to alcohol. Eventually, however, she found the strength to set out on her own, volunteering at hospitals and earning a PhD in clinical psychology.

Reflecting with humor and grace on her youth, search for love, and quest for answers, Cronin spins a shimmering story of self-discovery and transformation.

©2014 Eileen Cronin (P)2014 Audible Inc.
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

What listeners say about Mermaid

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    14
  • 4 Stars
    11
  • 3 Stars
    8
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    1
Performance
  • 3.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    10
  • 4 Stars
    7
  • 3 Stars
    9
  • 2 Stars
    3
  • 1 Stars
    2
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    12
  • 4 Stars
    11
  • 3 Stars
    5
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    1

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Meh. Sorry to say.

Although I consider it a privilege to have been allowed to listen in on Eileen's life, editing could've gone a long way to avoid this becoming a yawn fest. I had to listen to the narrative on 1.25 speed because her reading was very slow. The story of her life was intriguing from a point of insight into her disability & and big family home life but the second half of the book should've been edited to at least half. A fair attempt at a memoir but quite possibly the most boring one I've listened to. :( Sorry.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great story teller perfect narration

Any additional comments?

Eileen Cronin's style reminds me of David Sadaris but her life story, needless to say, was a bit heavier. Both great authors!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

excrutiatingly slow narration.

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

i would not.

What didn’t you like about Eileen Cronin’s performance?

She reads in an excrutiatingly slow manner, overpronouncing words and dragging sentences on for days.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!