I picked this up for $3 from one of those pop-up bookshops in my local mall yesterday. You know the ones I mean... three display stands stacked high with nothing over $5.
Little Obelia is an adaptation from the classic Australian illustrated book for children by May Gibbs – Snugglepot and Cuddlepie. The imprint page credits the "coloured reproductions and adaptations of original illustrations by May Gibbs" but that the words are by N Georgeson. The publisher is Murray David Publishing. There are seven separate copyrights on the imprint page.
The story and rhyme is a little bit all over the place but the images are quite charming for an underwaterphile. There are leafy sea dragon drawn shell carriages, Ragged Blossom slumbering on a shell bed, and Little Obelia, the Princess of the Sea, standing amongst her pearls like a baby Botticelli Venus.
The book is currently out of stock at Amazon and at the publisher but we've included the links just in case the situation changes. It's not strictly a mermaid story because we don't see any tailed humans or gumnut characters, but it will find a loving place in my mermaid / fairy book collection probably near Peg's Fairy Book.
Couldn't resist ... this piece is from the short story "The Gown of Cobweb Lace" from Peg Maltby's Peg's Fairy Book. Yes, we know it's fairy rather than mermaid artwork but it's too delightful for words and we thought you wouldn't mind us getting off theme once in a while.
... well to be honest, Peg Maltby is strictly speaking, more of a fairy artist than a mermaid artist but she did create this wonderful baby mermaid and water fairies piece for her short story "Fun Under the Sea" in her gorgeous book Peg's Fairy Book, which was published in Australia in 1946. I have a copy and I used to look at these pictures over and over again when I was a little girl. I showed Jozef the other day and he was captivated by them, especially this lovely illustration. What I didn't know was that this book sold over 100,000 copies in its time. It was reprinted again in the mid 1970s but it's difficult to get copies of either version now (although it is showing up by some resellers on Amazon, which will cost you a pretty penny).
I took the day off on Tuesday with my mum to avoid the crowds and to finish the last of my Christmas shopping, and drove down to Berrima, a small country town about 150km south of Sydney. In the first gift store I entered my eyes swept to a lovely stack of greeting cards on the front counter – amongst them – a mermaid. I was quite captivated with the illustrations and instantly bought the two you see alongside for my collection (call me selfish but they are just too gorgeous to give away unless, of course, I buy doubles). They are designed by a Melbourne artist Judith Howell. I checked out Judith's website and actually rang her up to have a chat and to ask permission to use the artwork. "No worries," was the reply in what turned out to be a long and engaging phone discussion about all kinds of things. At this point of time she is only selling them wholesale to retailers, but it is my understanding that she is rethinking her position. If you're after them, then either get a retailer in your area to order them in bulk OR add your name to her mailing list and she will inform you if there are any changes in distribution policy.
I picked this up for $3 from one of those pop-up bookshops in my local mall yesterday. You know the ones I mean... three display stands stacked high with nothing over $5. 
