Thora

Thora #1

by gillian-johnson

Thora's no ordinary girl. She's got scales on her legs, purple feet, and a blowhole that squirts water from the top of her head. Thora's a half-mermaid. And as mermaid law commands, Thora must spend ten years at sea and ten years on land. In a houseboat called the Loki, Thora sails the seas with her mermaid mother, Halla, and guard ian, Mr. Walters. But following her tenth birthday, Thora heads to the seaside town of Grimli, where her father grew up.

In Grimli, fat-cat tycoon Frooty de Mare will stop at nothing to expand his Tooty Frooty Enterprises. With the help of new friends and her pet peacock, Thora has her work cut out thwarting Frooty's evil plans -- not to mention doing a bit of exploring into her own Grimli roots.

Gillian Johnson's fanciful tale captures the unflappable spirit of an exceptional young heroine who, despite being half-mermaid, somehow always manages to land on her feet.

Genres: Fantasy, Childrens, Fiction, Mermaids, Unfinished, Young Adult, Juvenile

128 pages, Paperback

First published October 29, 2003

Reviews

[Piper · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has been one of my favourite books since I was a kid . Thora is a book about a girl with a human dad and a mermaid mom . So Thora has to spend 10 years in the ocean and then 10 years on land , or else she will die . I guess I have always liked this book because it was such a good book for anybody of any age . I'm so glad that I decided to read this book again, because I actually forgot about how good this book is.

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is an undiscovered gem. Along the lines of a more cheerful Roald Dahl story, this book should be in print and should be read by young girls who love to dream, who love to read and who love to get the better of horrid adults.

Great for bedtime reading aloud, as well.

[Eva · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm rating it according to my opinion of it when I was younger- around ten I'd say, or maybe younger- when I loved it. I haven't read it recently but for the target audience it's worthy of five stars.

[Kim North · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just finished reading this with Katrena, she loved it and kept begging me to read just one more chapter. It is a cute story about a 10 year old girl. I totally recommend it for your 7-9 year old daughters

[Nilsson]

I'd really like to witness a half mermaid squirting water out from the top of their head. I wonder if they ever show people? I keep imagining what would've happened if my family really had sold our trailer for a houseboat.

[sunhermit · Rating 4 out of 5]

THOSE CHILDHOOD MEMORIES THOUGH

[Elysia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was gifted this book by Gillian before my family and I moved to New Zealand. One of my childhood favourites :) If you ever read this (and if you still remember me haha), I hope you are all doing well! Hopefully I can make a trip over to the UK soon! x

[Purviben K. Trivedi-Ziemba]

A fun reading of children's spirit winning against greed of a person. A quick, fun read, a true picker upper . Go ahead and read. When you are done with this one, pick up 10 more, sit with a cup of coffee, some pastry and devour the books with gusto.

[Jesse · Rating 3 out of 5]

i liked the style of writing for this book, though the ending was slightly disappointing, i also enjoyed the illustrations (though clearly based on Quentin Blakes illustrations) would probably read again.

[Angeles · Rating 5 out of 5]

Este libro lo tiene todo: costumbrismo, sirenas, pueblos pesqueros, mensajes anticapitalistas. Thora es Matilda versión sirena y no hay nadie que me baje del carro. Ahora entiendo por qué me gustaba tanto de pequeña

[abril · Rating 5 out of 5]

Este libro me marcó mucho de pequeña, es genial.

[Zella · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was my favourite as a kid and is a total hidden gem!

[Jess Murphy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very sweet. Would have loved this when I was a kid.

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favourite part was when holly found out that thora was half mermaid and my other favourite part was when thora's grandmother and grandaunts found out that they were related to thora. p.s. I just watched a movie and it was so so good

[Selena Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Can I read this book

[Quasar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kid Book Club liked this one better than I did. They chose it randomly off of the shelves and it won out against a number of other books that I thought they'd like better. Yet, it never failed to hold their attention! They were confused by all of the characters at first, but eventually (after drawing a character map) they were swept up into the story. Thora, the half-mermaid, half-person, is a very quirky girl with a strong sense of adventure. Her behavior is that of a kid who has spent the first 10 years of her life on her own with her mother (mermaid), her human guardian, and their pet peacock. She doesn't read social cues very well, she speaks her mind even when it causes trouble, and she has no problem being who she is without apology.
A very good one for read-alouds because of the short chapters and funny names, and like I said, the kids just loved it.

[Angel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book in my bookshelf, and I wanted to give it a go since I've never read it. So at school I was reading it in class and my friend Brenden said, "You still read kiddie books? Aren't we in highschool not primary(elementary)? He was right but I still loved it! I finished it when I got home. I read this back in June, and it was worth it. So now I'm never going to judge a book by it's cover:)

[Katharine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book when I was younger, but time has fuzzed my remembrance of the plot. Only details remain: an old cinema in a small town run by two (somewhat) friendly old ladies, a girl with a blowhole (too cool... mermaids can be strange for a change!), a mother who's hair smelled oddly enough of pumpkin pie, and a houseboat with a hole cut in the floor to enter the sea. I suppose it was just a wacky enough book for me then.

[Jennie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun fantasy genre adventure book with a twist of mystery. Thora is half mermaid and half human. For the first 10 years of her life she must live with her mermaid mother, and then the next 10 years will be at her father's town Grimli. Her mother gets trapped by evil Frooty de Mare, and Thora must save her. Girls will love this book. gr. 3-7

[oliviasbooks · Rating 3 out of 5]

A half-mermaid Pippi Longstocking story (Mom the Mermaid is permanently away acing the Olympics and other competions - undetected, b.t.w. - instead of Captain Ephraim sailing the Oceans, while unafraid and inconventional Thora wreaks havock in a smallish, sleepy coast-town, collecting friends and solving crimes on the the way). Fun.

[Maggie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'll pass this along to my 7 year old to read. Not great, but it'll do.

[Leslie Bulion]

A humorous and light story that requires the reader to suspend disbelief within the framework of the story as well as in the larger, apparently non-magical world.

[Nataytay · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book when I was little and I'd try to get it every time I went to the library!

[Aaleyah · Rating 5 out of 5]

That was cute...
I love how Thora didn't know most of the English words.
The pictures were strange and funny!
In a way, it reminded me of Pipi Longstocking

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute story of a unique half-mermaid. My favorite parts were the drawings that added to the story. Lovely tale for the young!

[Cammie · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was fun I enjoyed when I was about 9 or 10 .

[Tiffany · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute book! Reminded me of Pippi Longstocking. Especially fun for preteen girls though I enjoyed it!

[Elaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very sweet,easy read and I enjoyed it very much.

[KC125 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Comical.

[Euphoria · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read it when i was pretty young. I can't really remember it, But overall i like it (: