In Coney Island, true love rises to the surface. With lush illustrations and buoyant prose, Venessa Vida Kelley forges an unforgettable New York fairytale.
Benigno “Benny” Caldera knows an orphaned Boricua blacksmith in 1910s New York City can’t call himself an artist. But the ironwork tank he creates for famed Coney Island playground, Luna Park, astounds the eccentric sideshow proprietor who commissioned it. He invites Benny to join the show’s eclectic cast and share in their shocking secret: the tank will cage their newest exhibit, a live merman stolen from the salty banks of the East River.
More than a mythic marvel, Benny soon comes to know the merman Río as a kindred spirit, wise and more compassionate than any human he’s ever met. Despite their different worlds, what begins as a friendship of necessity deepens to love, leading Benny’s heart into uncharted waters where he can no longer ignore the agonizing truth of Río’s captivity—and his own.
Releasing Río could mean losing his found family, his new home, and his soulmate forever. Yet Benny’s courageous choice may just reveal a love strong enough to free them both.
THE FACTS
📕re-telling of The Little Mermaid
📘beautiful illustrations that capture key moments in the story
📙 historical New York side show community
THE GOOD BITS
Vanessa Vida Kelley has created a marvellous work in “When the Tides Held the Moon” and I will never look out my window at the ocean again in the same way.
Benny was orphaned and after losing the only person he thought of as family he made his way from Puerto Rico to New York for a new life. The problem was that the new life wasn’t what he had hoped. He’s a talented blacksmith and his ironwork is like art. Eventually he catches the eye of a man who owns the side show Luna Park. The man has a mission, and it involves Benny building a large tank.
Benny soon finds himself on the team of people who have been recruited to capture a merman. A tragedy occurs when the merman is captured at of all the people there, it’s only Benny who realizes that the merman is mourning.
Río is the name the Benny gives the merman – river in Spanish– and eventually the two being talking, becoming friends, creating music and passing the time of their captivity. As the two souls get to know one another it becomes obvious that they are both imprisoned. Río is trapped in a tank, his freedom gone and his life force draining from him. Benny is trapped in a dead end job, with a boss who gives him no credit for his work, with no appreciation and in a body with lungs that betray him at every step.
Benny begins to long to release Río back to the ocean he is part of, but it comes with more loss. Benigno can’t imagine a life anymore with Río but there’s no option. If Río is to survive, he needs to be released from captivity before he succumbs to his confinement.
This is a beautiful story about found family, being different and unaccepted. It’s about loss and continuing to move forward when it feels impossible. This emotional story is only made more beautiful by the illustrations. Captured in the blue of the ocean, the drawings were exactly how I picture these characters after reading about them. I found myself looking forward to each new image that would be revealed as I turned the pages.
I did find that the chapters about Benigno and Río were an absolute joy to read. I loved the way that author captures their friendship as the bond between them continued to grow. The chapters written about the side show performers I found less engaging. Sometimes, the style was very different as though I was reading two different stories that were woven together.
Overall, a beautiful story, even if it’s not the most original idea. It’s very much a re-writing of the Little Mermaid.
THE LINKS
🖊 Author
I purchased my own copy of When the Tides Held the Moon. This is an unbiased review.
Kinzie Things 