Gallery: Books and Short Stories (10)

This Little Golden Book is part of a "[Princess] is My Babysitter" series, and in Ariel's case she gets to be the babysitter of Melvin, a little octopus that is excitable and clever in thwarting his guardian for the day. This story is also in "5-Minute The Little Mermaid Stories".

Part of the "Disney Princess Beginnings" novella series, this one tells a tale of Ariel as a curious but cautious youngster who'd yet to develop the confidence she'd have later in life. The age gap between the sisters may be less of an issue when they're older, but as kids, Ariel being the youngest makes all the difference, and in this book she's depicted as unsure of herself and (at the start, at least) defaulting to her elder sisters' opinions. That changes when she, Aquata and Andrina accidentally get lost by themselves, and their mini-adventure helps Ariel realize that she has some pretty good ideas, and the courage that it takes to act on them. It's a pretty fun take with nice accompanying art of a young Ariel who's still growing into the bold character we're more familiar with.

An abridged version of the story is in one of the "5-Minute Princess Stories" books, with slightly different pictures.

The scans below are of the major illustrations of the original novella, plus the full pages of the abridged version.

When Andrina falls sick, Ariel makes it her mission to find the cure, i.e. night lilies, no matter that night lillies are supposedly guarded by ghost lights. This cute short story was also released under the title "The Ghost Lights" in one of the "Princess Storybook Collection" books, and that version has more text but fewer pictures than this junior reader version.

Scuttle takes center stage in this "First Tales" junior reader book, which works kinda like a one-man (one-bird) monologue, as he shows off to the reader his collection of human things and their "function".

Ariel's still learning about life on land, and in this sweet little story she and Eric get to share some aboveworld treasures together, namely fireflies and stars. Thank you to Grace for sharing these images! This story is is the Big Golden Book "Princess Bedtime Stories" and "5-Minute The Little Mermaid Stories".