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= SAILOR TWAIN, or the Mermaid in the Hudson (graphic novel) =

Sailor Twain, or the Mermaid in the Hudson is a graphic novel written and drawn Mark Siegel and published in 2012 by First Second Books.

Serialization
The book was originally serialized online from 2010 to 2012, where it received over 800,000 unique visitors. Alongside installments of the book, Siegel published a companion blog, where he posted the stories, songs, maps, and other findings that comprised his research. He also hosted discussions with readers and included portraits of some of the comic’s fans in the book.

Plot Summary
The story takes place in 1887 in the Hudson Valley, on the steamboat Lorelei. Sailor Twain is told in a series of flashbacks, starting with the night that Elijah Twain, the captain of the ship, finds an injured mermaid clinging to the deck. He hides the mermaid in his quarters and gives her medical care. In turn, she breaks his writers’ block and inspires him to create. When in port, Twain visits with his invalid wife, Pearl; at sea his is a victim of the entrancing mermaid.

The owner of the Lorelei, Lafayette, begins to act strangely after his brother drowns under mysterious circumstances. A notorious ladiesman, he takes his courtship with the women who board the Lorelei very seriously. Lafayette also spends his time pouring over a volume about the history of the occult in the Hudson Valley written by C.G. Beaverton. Twain notices his strange behavior, and becomes suspicious of him when the mermaid mysteriously vanishes from his quarters.

Life aboard the Lorelei grows tumultuous as Lafayette and Twain search for the missing mermaid. Lafayette believes the mermaid’s song was responsible for his brother’s death, and has sworn to break her spell by killing her, or by finding seven loves, as C.G. Beaverton’s book advises. Twain, driven by lust and creative frustration, strives to protect the mermaid from Lafayette.

When the reclusive Beaverton pays the Lorelei a visit in response to Lafayette’s letters, it is revealed that the author is female, and destined to be Lafayette’s seventh and truest love. The mermaid, restored to health, asks Twain to aid her in breaking a curse put on her by her father. With the aid of a special pendant, Twain follows her to her undersea lair, only to find the shadows of the mermaid’s other victims.

On the Lorelei, Lafayette and Beaverton consummate their love, and the mermaid’s spell over him is broken. In breaking her spell, Lafayette has also denied the mermaid her chance to break the curse. The enraged mermaid allows Twain to escape, only to have the chaos aboard the Lorelei boil over, resulting in a massive explosion in the boiler rooms. Twain, Lafayette, and many of the Lorelei’s passengers are killed in the explosion.

Sailor Twain Beyond the Page
a.	New York Public Library exhibit “Sailor Twain’s New York: Secrets & Mysteries of the River Hudson” from October 2012 to April 2013 b.	Mark Twain House exhibit c.	Millbrook Winery released two Sailor Twain Series wines “Rivermaiden” and “Secret of the Hudson” for which Siegel drew the labels d.	New York jeweler Allison Hourcade created “The River Opener” pendant which appears in the story e.	Designer Lissi Erwin created stationery for the Lorelei steamboat, based on letterhead designs of 19th century steamboats

Critical Reception
Sailor Twain received positive reviews from a number of publications including starred reviews from Publisher’s Weekly and Booklist, who wrote,

“Siegel’s novel of obsessive romance and mythological realism churns through deep pools of humor, passion, and darkness. Studied panoramas of the intricate working of steamboats will steal away whatever breath you have left over from the mermaid’s beauty and the story’s outright tension as it steers toward a complex, catastrophic climax. Though serialized online, this is a luxurious graphic novel in its print form and is absolutely not to be missed.”

Additional Reviews

 * Unshelved
 * MTV Geek
 * Publisher's Weekly
 * Comics Waiting Room
 * Comic Book Resources
 * Stumptown Trade Review
 * Good Ok Bad
 * Library Journal
 * Criminal Element
 * The John Seven Collection
 * The Old Salt Blog
 * Mediocrity is the New Genius
 * Musings of a Librarian
 * Alex in Leeds