The Sea Fairies
by L. Frank Baum
1911

Enchanting fantasy by creator of beloved "Oz" stories whisks young readers away on an exciting underwater adventure! They'll meet a school of beguiling mermaids and an aristocratic codfish, attend an elegant banquet, confront an awesome sea monster, and much more. Enhanced by 78 of John R. Neill's original black-and-white illustrations.

"Nobody," said the old sailor solemnly, "ever sawr a mermaid an' lived to tell the tale!"

Little did Cap'n Bill realize his words would start him upon the greatest and most perilous adventure of his life -- along with the little sea-loving girl Mayre, whom he nicknamed Trot.

In The Sea Fairies, the famous author of the Oz books takes us on an adventure to a fairyland -- one to be found deep below the rolling waves of the ocean!

Mayre Griffiths, nicknamed Trot, or sometimes Tiny Trot, is a little girl who lives on the coast of southern California. Her father is the captain of a sailing schooner, and her constant companion is Cap'n Bill Weedles, a retired sailor with a wooden leg. (Cap'n Bill had been Trot's father's skipper, and Charlie Griffiths had been his mate, before the accident that took the older man's leg.) Trot and Cap'n Bill spend many of their days roaming the beaches near home, or rowing and sailing along the coast. One day, Trot wishes that she could see a mermaid; her wish is overheard, and granted the next day. The mermaids explain to Trot, and the distressed Cap'n Bill, that they are benevolent fairies; when they offer Trot a chance to pay a visit to their land in mermaid form, Trot is enthusiastic, and Bill is too loyal to let her go off without him.

Note: this isn't generally considered an Oz book, and you'd be hard pressed to find a mention of Oz in these pages. But in later books Baum wrote characters from this and other books into his Oz titles -- which makes these Oz series books, after a fashion.