Ringlet and the Day the Oceans Stopped
If you expect a book about mermaids to be an easy read, with a weak storyline and easy language, then think again! This book requires concentration and maybe even a little perseverance. I struggled through the first chapter or two, despite the author writing so enthusiastically. Maybe I’m just not used to the world of merfolk and the terminology around it? I had to go back and review some parts more than once, just to confirm and clarify what I thought I had read.
Some readers are likely to be introduced to demanding new vocabulary too. Even readers aged 11+ may struggle with the meaning of some of the words such as euphonious, beguilingly, magnanimity, cabriole, pustulated and evanescent.
However, the storyline and descriptions are likely to captivate the reader as mermaid Ringlet is required to visit the Upworlds and find a flame to give to ‘she who sleeps’ so that she can wake up and restore the currents and save the ocean. And which reader wouldn’t fall in love with Ringlet’s merdog called Iskee or her seagoat friend named Lumpy Custard? And for readers that enjoy hairstyling and accessorising, there’s some of that in the book too.
Title: Ringlet and the Day the Oceans Stopped
Author: Felicity Williams
Illustrator: Malene Laugesen (Cover)
Publisher: AHOY! (The Cuba Press)
ISBN: 978-0-9951197-0-3
RRP: $25
Format: Paperback
Date of Publication: 2019
Ages: 11+
Reviewer: Nadine Molloy, Library Assistant, Remarkables Primary School, Queenstown
How highly are you recommending this book? Recommended
What’s the book’s opening sentence? When the world began there was water everywhere, and the name of the water was Mer-Stella-Tail-That-Has-No-Ending.
You can buy this book here