Mermaid Dreams by Mark Sperring, illustrated by the Pope Twins.
Mermaid Dreams is the charming story of Meriam who does not like to get ready for bed.  Meriam’s wild hair flows across both the book’s cover and many of its pages as she brushes her teeth, gets her tangles combed out, and gets ready for bed.  But what does her mother find in her hair?  A shell, a fish, a starfish, and seaweed.  Meriam describes what she has done all day:  visited the beach, swum deep down underwater.  And finally gives her mother a pearl that she found.  Only at the very end is it revealed that Meriam is a mermaid.
This clever book will have children delighted at the end by the surprise.  Yes, grownups will have it figured out long before, but part of the charm of the story is the surprise itself.  The illustrations are fabulous, filled with water, waves, sand and creatures, they echo and reinforce the magic of mermaids. 
Share this with mermaid crazed girls, but don’t forget that boys enjoy a surprise too.  It is the perfect length for reading aloud and should be added to summer storytimes about beaches and swimming.