I LOVE The Book of Selkie. Do I have kids? Yes. Did they enjoy this book, yes. Though, I’m pretty sure I loved it more. The rhymes are perfect, the illustrations are stunning and the folklore, amazing!

*Thank you #NetGalley and Nimbus Publishing for a copy of this story. On my way to preorder it now!

I haven't come across many books about selkies, especially for this age group. (The only other one I can remember reading is Franny Billingsley's wonderful novel The Folk Keeper.) The Book of Selkie is a lovely little book of poems about a selkie girl's life.

The lyrical poetry is accompanied by beautiful acrylic paintings that show the selkie girl shedding her seal skin and going about her day as a human. Of course, the sea always calls her back, and she eventually returns to the waves, but not before having a lovely meal and knitting herself a sweater out of hand-spun fog.

If you enjoyed the film The Secret of Roan Inish, then you will probably find this picture book a treat. It introduces the mythology of selkies in an easy-to-understand way. The poems do a good enough job on their own, but there are also a couple of pages at the back that offer more insight into this legendary creature.

This book is a folklore tale about a fictional creature called a Selkie found around Scotland and Ireland. It's a beautifully illustrated children's book following the transformation of a Selkie that transforms from a seal to a woman, living half it's life in the sea and the other on land.

"Selkie Returns.
A yearning returns
Her nose gets an itch
She longs for her fins
Her toes start to twitch."

Its pictures are very well done. The mix and contrast between the cool blue and greens of the seal and the warm reds and oranges for the woman/faerie are gorgeous. I can't stop marvelling at its beauty.

It reads beautifully too. It has short parts about the different things a Selkie does and reads like poetry. I imagine people of all ages will love this short tale of the Selkie for its poetic explanations and gorgeous artistry. I can defiantly recommend to all ages and think any adult reading this to their children will love it as much as any child.

The Book of Selkie was an absolutely stunning book. I wish that it was a tactile book where I could touch the velvet of the selkie skin, the soft yarn, the paint on the page. The blurb of the book mentions that it is ideal for children's play time or bed time and at first I was skeptical but there are many mentions of activities, and then such languid language about the seaside. I was captivated throughout the entire book!

The Book of Selkie // by Briana Corr Scott

"Oh to be a Selkie, // And live between two worlds // Half your days spent as a seal, // And the other half, a girl..."

Oh what an adorable book! Scott beautifully wrote a story about what a Selkie is and how they like to spend their days. I love how her rhymes move along quickly without giving it a rushed feeling. They roll right off the tongue. Every page has stunning illustrations that accompany the words so well. The only complaint I have about this book is that it is too short. I wish it would go on forever!

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for providing me with a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

This is beautifully illustrated, lyrical book explores the mythical world of a selkie. I haven't seen a paper doll book for years, so it was wonderful to see this concept being used again. I remember having a couple of paper doll books as a child and being totally engrossed playing with them.

Stories about the selkie have been told for hundreds of years by those who live near the North Atlantic and North Sea. Sometimes called "seal folk," the selkie, as humans, are tall and strong with dark hair and eyes. Extremely private, they keep their seal coats hidden away until they get restless and are called to the sea, and take on their seal forms.

I was not familiar with the legend of the selkie prior to reading this book, however there is a double page spread near the end of the book explaining a little background to the forklore. Children are enchanted by mermaids and I am sure they would find the selkie equally as captivating.

The Selkie legend is explored in a series of short rhyming poems which when reading the book from start to finish, flow beautifully together revealling what Selkie likes to eat, where she lives, how she spends her time on land and in the sea. Each can be also be enjoyed as a stand alone poem.

This is not a typical rhyming book aimed at younger children as the vocabulary is pitched for older children. My 7 year old son was able to confidently read the book aloud to me, although I feel possibly Lower Key Stage 2 pupils onwards would fully appreciate the meaning. However, both my son and my daughter (5 years old) were drawn to the beautiful illustrations - particularly the one depicting the selkie's little thatched house and washing line with it's underground cave entrance.

The acrylic illustrations in the book are simply exquisite. Hues of emerald and aqua contrast wonderfully with the selkie's striking auburn hair and the delicate lace of the selkie's dress.

The Book of Selkie would be a magical way of teaching a traditional legend and sharing some of the heritage of the British Isles.

To further explore the world of Selkies, visit https://brianacorrscott.com/selkie

Thank you to NetGalley and Nimbus publishing for providing me with a digital ARC copy in exchange for my review.

I received an advanced review copy from the publisher through NetGalley, and here are my thoughts:

First of all, my daughter was crazy about the animated movie, 'Song of the Sea', which is about a boy and his mute younger sister, a selkie. I was curious to read this book and learn more about selkies.

For me, the main strength of this book is the lyrical, whimsical text. Although the artwork works well to illustrate the content of the text, it doesn't evoke the same kind of playfulness as the words.

If you have a young child fascinated by selkies, this would be a charming book to read together.

This is a beautiful illustrated story book. The colours are so enticing and really transport you to a village beside the sea and under the sea. The story is wonderful and perfect for children of all ages. It is also great that there is an explanation of the legend of the Selkie at the end of the book which might encourage those more voracious readers to go in search of more about the legendary Selkie.

This beautiful book made me want to be a selkie! I cannot imagine how children would react to this book, but as an adult, I like it a lot! The illustrations and the general feeling of the book are not full of sunshine, but still, it is beautiful.

I don't think this will be entertaining to every child out there cause selkie is not known around the world but if they know what it is, they will love this as much as I did.

Simple yet lyrical, this book is simply beautiful. With its gorgeous illustrations, it reminded me of Khoa Le's work. As the book uses some difficult vocabulary, I would recommend it for older children.

I was hoping for either stories about the Silkies, or a story about a particular silkie, but this was a weird combo of the two.

It reads as though it is talking about something, and not at the same time.

The pictures are lovely, but there is no real story here. No story other than a girl who is a seal, sheds her skin, and lives on the land, and then goes back to being a seal. The end.

Usually tales of silkies talk about men taking their skins to trick them into staying, or things like this. This story does none of these things.

But the pictures, as I said, are quite lovely, so that redeems the books.

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

A series of poems about a selkie, a girl who spends half her time as a seal. There is also a section about the legend of the selkie. The illustrations are beautiful and the story is intriguing.

This was such a beautiful book!
Both the prose and the illustrations were captivating and I loved the piece in the end with the facts about the selkie. I definitely learned something to new today and will be on the lookout for books with selkies from now on.
Thank you Netgalley for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Book of Selkie by Canadian author Briana Corr Scott is an absolutely gorgeous poetry picture book explaining the mystical creature of the sea – the Selkie. With rich, earthy colours and water that shimmers like gems, the illustrations draw readers in with a magical charm. A spell is cast as we enter the world of this part-seal, part-girl from North Atlantic folklore.

Through poetic rhyme, the details of a Selkie’s day are painted across the pages. Her home, routine, food and magic are shared in the hopes that the reader might one day be lucky enough to spot a Selkie for themselves. The links between a Selkie’s beauty and the natural world are enchanting ~ a voice deep inside calls her back to the land, she gathers up the salt fog, she sings as she roams the dunes…yearning to return to the sea.

The quiet, generous, happy life of the Selkie inspires readers to live closer to the land and appreciate the beauty around us. Perhaps one day, we might come close to a Selkie and feel the magic for ourselves.
There is an extra treat in this book with a paper doll, clothing and seal to play with. Readers will lose themselves in the legend of the Selkie.

Visit Briana Corr Scott’s website for more information.

Thank you to Nimbus Publishing and NetGalley for this beautiful book!

A beautifully illustrated children's book. A great introduction to the Selkie myth without the negative aspects so common in the myth. You don't need to be a child to enjoy this one.

Beautifully drawn and written; Brianna Corr Scott's "The Book of Selkie" is an enchanting, engrossing and unique reading experience.

This book is a beautifully illustrated story of a selkie girl and the adventures she has both on land and in the sea. The author has also included the history of the selkie legend in the back. As someone whose family has had the selkie tales as part of their story history, it's nice to have a version of the story that isn't tragic. This is definitely a book that will be passed around our family.

I want to thank NetGalley and Nimbus Publishing for giving me free access to this book in exchange for an honest review.

I would give the artwork 5 stars. I thought it was very beautiful. Whimsical yet still feeling like it's drawing real life things. While the font used for the title of each poem felt like it fit the feel of the artwork, the font used for the body of the poems reminds me of when children first learn to add text to an image on a computer. Of course, really fancy fonts are not ideal for children's books, but I can't help but wonder if there's a font that is both easy for young children to read that also fits the art style a bit better.

Most of the poems have a rhythm and rhyme that would make them ideal for reading aloud to a child. But a few lines feel like they didn't quite flow. In addition, it would have been nice if some of the poems were a little longer. I think with the illustrations and the interesting details about selkie, children's attention would be help well enough for a few more stanzas.

Selkies are one of those mythological beasties that permeate Scottish folklore but I haven't seen them appear in a kid's book before so The Book of Selkie is a treat.
The book isn't a story so much as a series of little passages that tell the reader all about being a Selkie in a rhyming and lyrical way accompanied by beautiful illustrations.
The book would be a perfect bedtime read for any young child but especially for those who have an affinity for the sea or love for make-believe.

A beautiful picture book about the myth of the Selkie or seal folk. The illustrations are beautiful to look at and I think children will love to learn about this myth since I did as well.