Dover Six Mermaids in Art Cards Box Set

Our good friend Nick Nicolaou from Makeup Effects Group keeps us mer-satiated with lots of mermaid images and special deals. Here is one of the latter—Dover Publications has released six famous Pre-Raphaelite art cards for $1.50 plus postage. This is a great deal. Turns our that Dover also has lots of other mermaid goodies, including a whole bunch of mermaid paper dolls. Both Jozef and I LOVED paper dolls when we were kids so this was an exciting discovery for us because mermaid ones weren't available at that time. We suspect you'll rediscover your inner child with these offerings.

Mermaids in Comics 6 – The Mermaid

This mermaid comic is a similar take to the comics story which we covered in Mermaids in Comics 2 – The Little Sea Maid, except that it is coloured and only one page instead of six. This piece comes from the Princess Comic (26/08/67) and is cited as being a being a story from a ballet. The comic comes courtesy of one our readers – Terence – who we thank for bringing it to our attention.

Valentine Black Mermaid Advocates "Languid Love"

Happy 2013, readers! We're getting ready for a big year, and Jozef starts things rolling with his latest interpretation of our Valentine Black Mermaid – "Languid Love". We've just changed our product line up as well. Aprons are out and pyjamas, rugs and yoga mats are in, plus lots of other goodies. Check out our wares at Black Mermaid Boutique.

Merry Xmas Merry Readers!

We're signing off for the year and just wanted to wish you a very Merry Xmas and a safe and happy New Year! Talk to you again in 2013!

An Elf~Fin Message from Jozef to our Readers

Plans and best intentions were that Elf-Fin was to be released by the end of 2012. Though all effort was directed towards this end, there needed to be a balance between the output of the painted Elf~Fin pages (with each page taking many days to complete… all without pay), and unrelated art output for paid jobs. So I'm sincerely sorry to those who had their hearts set on the 48 page first issue comic book to be released by this year's end. The production is still moving forward for a release in early 2013. I'm thankful for your support as we move towards the finish line for this issue.

Mermaid Books 7 – The Mermaid and the Red Candle

I completely forgot about this children's picture book title in my mermaid book collection. Someone gave me a copy when I was about nine or ten. I don't know whether it was new or secondhand but it is still in pretty good condition now. The book in question is called The Mermaid and the Red Candle. The author is Jane Carruth. The artist is Konosuke Iwamoto. It was published in 1968 by Paul Hamlyn. It's a story about an elderly couple who find and adopt a mermaid baby. She brings blessings and riches to their candle making business. It's also a sad story of greed and exploitation. It is beautifully written and poignant, and the illustrations are lovely. It's out of print now but we found that Amazon has contacts to sellers who have used copies. We advise you to track them down quickly before they sell out.

World Premiere of Australian Graphic Novels Documentary

The world premiere of feature documentary Graphic Novels! Melbourne! by filmmaker Daniel Hayward and comic book maker Bernard Caleo is happening in Melbourne later this month.

The film took a year to shoot and edit. It examines the amazing Melbourne comic book culture, and features Nicki Greenberg, Pat Grant and Mandy Ord. The film also features interviews with international comic book luminaries Scott McCloud, Paul Gravett, Dylan Horrocks and Shaun Tan. The soundtrack is by Martin Martini and the poster is by the incomparable Pat Grant. 

The film premieres on: 

Date: Thursday 22 November 2012

Time: 8.30pm for 8.45pm speeches and a 9pm film start

Place: Tyne Street laneway next to Readings bookshop 309 Lygon Street Carlton

(if it's a wet night, then the movie will move to Cinema Nova).

Price: FREE.

Bookings: Book through Readings on (03) 9347 6633 or events@readings.com.au