Description: Bestselling award-winner Chris Riddell creates a lively cast of characters led by mermaid Atalanta Scrimshaw, who records the adventures of her friends in her diary. Perfect for readers of 7-9 who love Ottoline and The Little Mermaid.
Brief description: Chris Riddell, the 2015-2017 UK Children's Laureate, is an accomplished artist and the political cartoonist for the Observer. He has enjoyed great acclaim for his books for children. His books have won a number of major prizes, including the 2001, 2004 and 2016 CILIP Kate Greenaway Medals. Goth Girl and the Ghost of a Mouse won the Costa Children's Book Award 2013. His work for Macmillan also includes the bestselling Ottoline books, The Emperor of Absurdia, and, with Paul Stewart, the Muddle Earth books, the Scavenger series and the Blobheads series. Chris has been honoured with an OBE in recognition of his illustration and charity work. He lives in Brighton with his family.
Review Quotes:
"Charming, witty and imaginative, and packed with an unbelievable amount of stunning artwork for the price point. This might be one of the best books to be published for 7-9 year-olds this year." --The Bookseller
"This gorgeous book, written as a diary with Riddell's stunning illustrations, is so packed with literary puns and cultural jokes that I had to read it twice in case I missed something. The first in a series, this is the perfect summer read." --Daily Mail "Full of Riddell's richly detailed and intricate black and white illustrations, this utterly charming and comedy-infused fantasy adventure delivers a seductive blend of friendship, underwater fun and imagination." --Pam Norfolk, Lancashire Post "'Humorous and fabulously illustrated, this 7+ diary adventure is stuffed to the gills with charm'" --The Guardian "Riddell's trademark wry humor and gorgeous black-and-white illustrations make this environmental fable a visual treat. Details of the myriad habitats and their inhabitants and hilarious annotations, puns, and literary and pop-culture references are coupled with an engaging narrative that takes a dig at destructive development . . . The funny asides will have both adult and young readers giggling." --Kirkus starred review