Graphic Novel Review: Sea Sirens

Posted on July 25, 2019 at 10:51 am by Gene Ambaum

Sea Sirens (A Trot & Cap’n Bill Adventure) by Amy Chu and Janet K. Lee. Viking, 2019. 9780451480170. 144pp.
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Trot surfs Huntington beach with her cat, Cap’n Bill, while her grandpa fishes. Her grandpa has dementia, and after he wanders off, Trot’s mom says they both have to stay home when she’s not around. But Trot sneaks out to go surfing when her grandpa is taking a nap. Cap’n Bill falls off their board, and then, under the waves, he helps some mermaids battle a group of serpents. (After Trot goes to look for him they are both granted the ability to breathe underwater.) The sea sirens are all quite taken with Bill — they’ve never seen a creature like him — and they give him the power to speak, too. Soon Trot, Bill, and their new friends are on a rescue mission to the deepest trench in the ocean.
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The story is more fun and dreamlike than threatening, and I can’t wait to see how Lee’s amazingly colorful art brings the undersea kingdom to life. (My review copy is black and white except for a few colored pages. Still wonderful, but I bet the published version is extra beautiful.)