Ingo

Helen Dunmore, author of Zillah and Me and The Silver Bead, begins a trilogy for children with a novel that describes both an idyllic life, growing up beside the sea, and an undersea world of wonder and amazement with equal aplomb. It's not easy to imagine life under the waves, living and breathing amongst an ancient people without resorting to stereotypes. But Dunmore's original description throughout this book is one of its best qualities.

Set in Cornwall, Ingo is the story of Sapphire and her brother Conor, and what happens to them after their father mysteriously disappears at sea. Sapphire still thinks her father is alive. Somewhere. She remembers stories he used to tell her about a Mer creature who fell in love with a human, but could not come to live with him in the dry air.

The following summer, both Conor and Sapphire are inexorably drawn to the water, despite the worries of their mother. They love the water so much, and spend hours in the nearby cove. When Sapphire follows Conor one day, after he has been gone a long time, she meets Faro--a Merman who introduces her to Ingo, an underwater world she could only have dreamed existed. And Ingo blood runs deep through her veins and it is not long before the call of that other world becomes too strong to resist.

Dunmore is an accomplished writer for adults, she was the first winner of the Orange Prize for Fiction, but her books for younger readers, despite having all the same qualities and powerful storytelling talent, have not been as critically or commercially successful. Ingo, however, is sure to change that perception. It is a beautiful novel, both enchanting and exciting, that appeals to readers on many levels. It is seductively easy to read and stays in the memory for a long time.

(Age 10 and over) --John McLay

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It's amazing!!! - Rated
One of the best books I've ever read. I'm 10 and I got lost in the world of Ingo. It's not childish, it's fascinating. I'm now reading the third book and it's just as good. I highly recommend this book.

An Amazing Story!! - Rated
This book is soooo good! I could not put it down. it makes you feel as if you are in the story, swimming through the coves and flying through the currents. I would reccomend all the books (Ingo, the tide knot, the deep and the crossing of ingo) to anyone. Even if you dont like reading that much this book will hook you!

A must read book for all ages! - Rated
This is a really great read and as its one in a series it definately makes you want to read the others. A brillinat adventure for all ages. Would highly recommend!

Beautiful read - Rated
Wow! What a lovely read. I've always wanted to be a mermaid (yes, I know, what a weirdo) and reading this book was spellbinding! I couldn't put it down and finished it within a day. It is such a beautiful book, and I recommend it for all ages :) What are you waiting for?

WONDERFUL - Rated
Ingo is a wonderful,adventurous and well written book set in cornwall.
the story is based on the adventures sapphire has in Ingo with her friends Faro and elvira.
Ingo is a whole different world beneath the waves totally opposite to on land which the mer call air.
It has a fun,beautiful,peaceful and also spooky side to it.
Where Dolphins play and sea creatures speak ,when sapphire enters Ingo she instantly feels at home.
I would recommend this book to everyone,it is a brilliant story to read aloud and it really makes you feel like your there, and being the characters.