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Mangrove Sands, the Enchanted Seaworld and Beyond
Mangrove Sands, The Enchanted Seaworld and Beyond, written by L. J. Nilsson, takes us on a magical adventure in Southeast Queensland, Australia. Following along as Tommy, Maria, Jake, and Wanjee receive tutoring from their Sea World friends during their school year and learn life lessons. Wanjee also teaches Tommy, Maria, and Jake about her aboriginal Muandik language, culture, symbolic art, bedtime stories, and more. The children enjoy learning about Wanjee’s culture, and she enjoys teaching them about her aboriginal roots. The school year goes by quickly, and the children start their transition to the next chapter in their lives.
Mangrove Sands, The Enchanted Seaworld, and Beyond is the sweetest book I have read in a long time! I love that it is inclusive of Wanjee’s character. Learning about her aboriginal tribe, the Muandik, was an absolute pleasure. Some of the words that were used in her language, such as didgeridoo, were words I had heard before. However, I did not know where they originated from. It was a wonderful surprise!
Maria’s character was so sweet. She seems to be very caring and eager to learn. Tommy seemed like he was clearheaded and thought problems through. He is mature for his age. Jake’s character seemed like quite a few boys I know. He was competitive but a good sportsman. He was also handy with tools and musically gifted. All of the Sea World friends sounded absolutely amazing! I really wish I had a friend named Parlow to talk to. Parlow is very wise.
Overall, I loved the book very much! I would recommend it to children and adults alike. In fact, more adults should read more books like this! Then they can learn to have more compassion and empathy for other living beings. The only part that confused me a little was when the children lay in bed and said their code of silence. They would then float onto Parlow’s back. I wondered if it was an out-of-body experience, but I wasn’t sure because of a couple of places in the book. One of them is when Jake gets hurt. That was the only part that confused me. I suppose it is a magical realm, so it may always remain a mystery.
I want to add that I loved the note L. J. Nilsson wrote at the very beginning. I think they nailed their intention and were very respectful. Also, I love that they included resources throughout the book for further research on the Muandik tribe.
Mangrove Sands, The Enchanted Seaworld and Beyond is a children’s fantasy novel that adults can enjoy and learn from as well. This heartfelt book teaches about friendship, empathy, and honor, among other things, and does so while taking readers on an exciting adventure they will not soon forget.
Pages: 108 | ASIN : B087N5QGDT
Surrounded by Ocean
Mangrove Sands takes four friends who all seemed destined for uncertain futures and sends them on a magical adventure. What was the inspiration for the setup to your story?
Once I retired, writing was a way of staying connected to the students who I missed terribly. My beautiful environment surrounded by ocean, marine animals and bushland full of native birds and wildlife added to my inspiration and development of fictional characters.
Your characters were wonderfully diverse and well developed. What were some driving ideals behind your character’s development?
Having worked with Primary school students for nearly a decade who were verified under the spectrum and watching them grow under my wing and transform from failing students to students who began to enjoy learning, were finally understood and given a new way of learning, definetley played a part in the development of my characters.
Each character has a small piece of character or personality from some of the children I worked with.
Many of these students have transitioned to highschool and beyond. One in the army, one studying law, another a graphic designer. They still stop for a chat or send me messages .
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
Definetley for children facing hardship and adversity my book aims to encourage children to find the positive in even the worst situation and make every day count.
Other underlying themes touch on environmental awareness, empathy and kindness.
What is the next book that you are working on and when will it be available?
Both the sequel Mangrove Sands, The Enchanted SeaWorld & Beyond and The third book of the series, Mangrove Sands, The Epic Journey are currently in production in London.
It is hoped that the sequel will be released in 2021. This book includes an indigenous aboriginal character who teaches her friends about her language and culture.
The third book includes a Swedish character opening the doors and young minds to embrace multiculturalism, language and diverse cultures And of course, there are many more adventures in the Enchanted Seaworld.
Author Links: GoodReads | Facebook | Website
Based on an island in South East Queensland, Australia, four children, who attend the same island state school, are all miserable at home and school until Parlow, the pelican, comes knocking on Tommy’s window one night to offer him a better life. Tommy thinks he is dreaming as do his friends—Maria, Dino and Jake—who all have an out of body experience and are taken to an enchanted underwater sea world beneath Mangrove Sands, where they meet talking animals who have their own language and become the children’s tutors, mentors and friends.
Through an enchanting underwater sea world of magic, adventure and humour, Mangrove Sands aims to provide hope and inspiration to children around the globe facing adversity.
Mangrove Sands
![Mangrove Sands: The Enchanted Sea World by [L. J. Nilsson]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/518JA4SgG3L.jpg)
Imagine having a dream that included all of your closest friends. You are swooped away hearing promises of future adventures below the sea to worlds beyond your wildest imagination. Your dream is so very vivid and involved that you wake up recalling you were ultimately sworn to secrecy. Picture waking up from this most amazing and magical experience, rushing to tell your friends about it all the while believing that everything you saw, touched, and felt was a fantastic figment of your imagination. Now, imagine listening as your friends describe for you the same dream down to the very last detail.
Mangrove Sands: The Enchanted Sea World, by L.J. Nilsson, takes four friends who all seemed destined for uncertain futures and are living far less than ideal lives and gives them a most magical experience. This short fantasy adventure story is a quick read that hands young readers relatable characters for whom they will be more than happy to cheer.
Nilsson caught this elementary teacher in the first chapter with the detailed descriptions of each of the four children. It is not often young readers get to see four characters all having either disabilities or suffering from some type of tragedy or abuse. Many stories may feature one of this character type, but to see so many as main characters is refreshing and gives me hope. Children need to see themselves reflected in the books they read, and seeing children they essentially know in Tommy, Maria, Jake, and Dino is uplifting to say the least.
One of the most captivating aspects of Nilsson’s work is the joy clearly conveyed in each of the main characters. Their everyday lives are such a stark contrast to the pure unfettered delight the children feel as they take this new path. They deserve happiness in massive doses, and the reader is witness to all of their discoveries, their joyful outbursts, and the colorful way in which the author describes their eagerness for more adventures.
Nilsson has developed a beautiful adventure story that also spreads a message of hope to its readers. Mangrove Sands: The Enchanted Sea World builds on the curiosity of youth, the power of dreams, and contains a strong message of kindness. It is just what today’s young readers need to feel. As it will appeal to readers of mixed genres, I would recommend Nilsson’s work to any upper elementary teacher looking to add a touching and heartfelt adventure story to their library.
Pages: 108 | ASIN: B087N5QGDT
LITERARY TITAN 