Mermaid Summer - Paperback

by Robyn L. Coburn (Author)

Jenna Hanson, lonely 11-year-old, finds an extraordinary friendship after her family moves to a resort town in the mountains. She is as frustrated as any other tween with her parents, even more so with having to start all over again in yet another new place. But at least there is the summer fun of swimming and boating in the surprisingly large lake to look forward to, and maybe someone in this little crowd of local girls will accept her. Then Jenna meets an orphan mermaid, living in secret, and she learns what it means to be truly lonely. But the mermaid, named Lira, is in danger. Until their deaths in a freak accident, Lira's parents were able to use magical energies to keep the lake pristine despite industrial waste spewed by the paper mill on the hill. Over the last three years the lake has slowly become contaminated. Now a battle brews between the mill and Jenna's biologist dad. Worse, the mill manager, who has long suspected Lira's existence, hopes to use the mermaid's gifts to make her fortune. To save her new friend, Jenna must do two things she never thought she would: break a pinky promise and lead a team. A story that has action on land and water, as well as about trust and doing whatever it takes to help a friend, Mermaid Summer is set in our contemporary world where everyone, including young people, can learn to take responsibility and make good choices for the environment.

Author Biography

After a life designing theater in Australia and Texas, Robyn Coburn moved to California to work in the art departments of indie films. Then when her daughter was born, she pivoted to become a writer and visual artist. Robyn wrote the authorized biography of the Oscar-winning actor, James Coburn, Dervish Dust: The Life And Words Of James Coburn, published by Potomac Books, an imprint of the University of Nebraska press, in 2021. Her writing on alternative education has been featured online, and she was a columnist for Natural Life Magazine, writing about green crafting.