The Mermaid of Brooklyn

By: Amy Shearn

Narrated by: Hillary Huber

In this beautifully written novel that blends the whimsy of The Time Traveler’s Wife with an indelible portrait of motherhood, a young woman strives to pick up the pieces after her husband mysteriously leaves - and she finds strength from the unlikeliest of allies.

Jenny Lipkin is an average, stretched-too-thin Brooklyn mom tackling the challenges of raising two children in a cramped Park Slope walk-up and bonding with the other moms about breast-feeding while spending endless hours in Prospect Park. All she really wants is to survive the sweltering New York summer with a shred of sanity intact. But when her husband Harry, a compulsive gambler, vanishes one evening without a word, Jenny finally reaches her breaking point. In a moment of despair, a split-second decision changes her life forever.

Pulled from the brink by an unexpected - and as it turns out, sometimes annoying - supernatural ally, Jenny is forced to rethink her ideas about success, motherhood, romance, and relationships. Confronting her inner demons - of both the mermaid and nonmermaid variety - is no easy task, and eventually Jenny has to come to terms with who she truly is, for better or worse.

©2013 Amy Shearn (P)2013 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

“An absorbing, energetically offbeat novel that merits attention.” ( Kansas City Star)

“A fierce and vivacious book about motherhood, astounding in its honesty, fearless in its humor, and exploding with love.” (Maria Semple, New York Times best-selling author)

“I absolutely loved this inventive, smartly written tale of a struggling single mother who finds herself seeing her life through new eyes - those of a lusty, fearless, and frequently wise mermaid eager to take on all the world has to offer. Insightful and engaging.” (Jill Smolinski, author of Objects of My Affection)

skip it

Would you try another book from Amy Shearn and/or Hillary Huber?

nope

What could Amy Shearn have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

nothing I can think of

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Really bad kid voices. Russian voice was good.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

I was disappointed. Felt like a blog that was published. Not enough there there for me.