Stella & Marigold: Mermaids and Mix-Ups
by Annie Barrows; illus. by Sophie Blackall
Primary, Intermediate    Chronicle    116 pp.
9/25    9781797219714    $15.99

Big sister Stella and little sister Marigold make a welcome return to the page with their own brand of sibling affection. The humor, energy, and poignancy of the first book (Stella & Marigold, rev. 9/24) hinged on their frequent, and entirely plausible, misunderstandings of the adult world, and they are still at it. Here they get the idea that the optimum number of friends is twenty-five, and in nine episodes they work hard to amass that number. During this quest, one (or both) of the duo steals a neighbor’s tchotchke, fakes a bloody injury, discovers the solace of duct tape, and runs away from home. The pleasure lies in the fresh particularity of the details in both text and pictures. Nothing is generic. When the girls goof around, they play “catch-the-stuffie-with-your-feet.” Blackall’s illustration of itchy dresses captures that misery perfectly. The stolen object is not just a mermaid candleholder but a weird, sharp-toothed mermaid chewing on a sailor. This specificity works to keep sentimentality at bay. In a final scene, a kindly upstairs neighbor gives a touching little analysis of what true friendship involves. The girls listen politely, but they don’t actually buy it. Life is just way more complicated than any adult seems to realize. A firmly child-centered delight.

From the November/December 2025 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.