美人魚：傳說與故事書

The illustrations alone are worth it, especially the selkie story that fills a full spread. I've been reading one tale a night and the writing has this quiet, melancholy tone that sticks with you.

The cover art alone made me stop and stare before I even opened it. The stories lean more melancholic than I anticipated, which suits the whole "in-between" theme perfectly.

I went in expecting a few classic selkie tales and instead got a whole range of stories — some old, some I'd never heard of, all circling that eerie in-between feeling the intro describes. The section on mermaids as neither fully human nor fully other stuck with me for days.