Julian Is a Mermaid

A vibrant, witty celebration of tolerance. * BBC Culture *“celebratory and ground-breaking” * The Sunday Times Culture/The Sunday Times Ireland *“The stand-out title this month is a picture book, Julian Is a Mermaid by Jessica Love. […] In the bravura feat of understated storytelling, the richness of Julian’s free-floating imagination is caught in images layered with colour, movement, muscle and life, celebrating black and Latino experience. Julian invents a tail and flowing hair, and Nana’s acceptance, as she accompanies him on a wild parade of mermaids, will leave the reader filler with joy.” * The Guardian *This is Jessica Love’s debut picture book, and every choice she makes — the spare text, a color palette both muted and lively, full-bleed pages that make even subway cars and apartment rooms feel as expansive as the ocean — imbues the story with charm, tenderness and humor…Alongside Julián, readers learn that anyone can be a mermaid: All it takes is love and acceptance, a little imagination and a big swishy tail. * The New York Times Book Review *Beautiful […] Magnificent […] Lovely […] Magical […] Gorgeous * RuPaul of RuPaul’s Drag Race *

Jessica Love is an illustrator and Broadway actress. She has a BA in studio art from the University of California, as well as a graduate degree from Juilliard. Julian Is A Mermaid is her multi-award-winning and widely acclaimed picture book debut, and Julian at the Wedding is her follow-up. She has also written and illustrated A Bed of Stars.