This two-sided book is no Disney version of the Little Mermaid. On one side of the book the reader will find the 1930s translation of the original Hans Christian Anderson story. (Spoiler: a very different sort of “happily ever after” ending in the original!) The flip side of the book is a blackout poem of the original story that modifies the ending to one of female empowerment. The pages are lovely with simple designs in addition to the blacked out parts. The poem reads like poetry magnets on the page. The complete poem is also included outside of the blacked out pages.  If a teacher were teaching blackout poetry, this would be a perfect book to demonstrate how it can be done – beyond just crossing out the parts one didn’t want. In the author’s note, she speaks of finding our own story in another – of creating a new version that speaks your truth. I thought this was a lovely little book. It was interesting to read the original version and delightful to see the “hidden” story beneath the surface.