WRITTEN BY ILLUSTRATED BY
SAULO RIBAS
XAVIER BARTABURU
FERNANDA RIBEIRO
WRITTEN BY
ILLUSTRATED BY
SAULO RIBAS
XAVIER BARTABURU
FERNANDA RIBEIRO
Copyright © 2023
Saulo Ribas and Xavier Bartaburu (text)
Fernanda Ribeiro (illustrations)
Editorial direction
Aloma Carvalho
Making books, spreading reading! www.pangolin-books.com
Editorial assistant Jessica Spilla Revision
Maria Cristina Monaco
Desktop publishing
Indaia Emília S. Pelosini
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This book is written in OpenDyslexic, a dyslexia-friendly typeface that makes reading more enjoyable for all.
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INTERNATIONAL DATA FOR CATALOGING IN PUBLICATION (CIP)
SAULO, R.
Cleo and the mermaids. / Saulo Ribas and Xavier Bartaburu (text); Fernanda Ribeiro (illustrations). 1st edition. São Paulo: Pangolin Books, 2023.
64 p. : color illu., 21 x 28 cm
ISBN - PRINTED BOOK - 978-65-85061-93-3
ISBN - E-PUB - 978-65-85061-94-0
ISBN - MOBI - 978-65-85061-95-7
ISBN - PDF - 978-65-85061-90-2 DDC 028.5
2023 © All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reprinted, reproduced, or transmitted in any form or by any means – electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise –without prior permission in writing from the publisher.
Pangolin Books is a children's book publisher based in São Paulo, Brazil.
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To all the boys and girls who know how to be brave and help others.
Nights at Cleo’s house were always a blast.
Every time Pingo and Tom would have a sleepover at our little Cuca’ s house, the fun was never-ending. Everyone would slip into their pajamas – including Pingo – and spend the night eating cookies, making up games, and chitchatting.
Cleo loved to show off to her friends the new spells she’d learned from the book Saci had brought her.
On one of those playful nights, Cleo figured out a way to change the color of Tom’s hair.
— Now green! – she said, waving her hand all over the place. And bam! Tom’s hair turned green.
— Now blue!
Tom was having a blast. For each color, he’d make up a new dance. And it was always his own crazy way of dancing, twisting his Curupira feet.
— Now pink!
— Hey, not that one! Pink is a girly color! – said Tom.
— I’ m the Cuca here! I’ m the one who picks the colors!
And bam! Tom’s hair looked like strawberry ice cream. Pingo laughed and laughed.
Cleo thought she was the happiest girl in the world to have such special friends as Pingo and Tom. A Mapinguari inside the house! Who would have thought?
ABOUT THE BOOK
In this second volume of the adventures of Cleo and her friends, the protagonist girl finds out more about her own magical powers, and ultimately about herself. In the book, Cleo comes to term and is happier with her fate of being a Cuca girl, but is still oblivious to the transformations that await her. Her meeting with the Iaras – the mermaids of the collective imagination in Brazilian folklore – will be very revealing to Cleo. With the help of her friends, Curupira and Mapinguari, the young Cuca will learn important lessons in solidarity, tolerance, and self-acceptance.
For more than fifty years, our fantastic beings have been explored in literary and informative works destined to children and young boys and girls. The adventures of Cleo and her friends represent a small, albeit important contribution to the dissemination of Brazilian culture.
ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATIONS
Colorful, but soft; strong, but delicate. So are the illustrations of this book, revealing to young readers all of the countless possibilities of representing the enchanted beings of Brazilian folklore.
There are three main colors in the illustrations: green, orange, and purple. This composition helps emphasize details at the same time subtle and important to characterize the ambiance and characters of the story. Green and purple tones permeate Cleo’s clothes, the vegetation, and even the sky, as delicate as the waters of the river where the mermaids live. A strong orange, almost red, pops out in Tom’s fiery hair and in the sunset. And Pingo – the big and warmhearted child – has brown fur like the trees of the forest of which he is so fond.
In addition, the illustrations were also designed to express the emotions of the characters and the tension in the plot. When Cleo and the mermaids first enter the cave, it is a dark and narrow place. Later on, when the porpoise is healed, it shines in tones of green and blue.
The illustrations in Cleo’s adventures were created to touch, thrill and broaden our references and our imagination, creating a universe where the fantastic element of the narrative becomes possible.
NOW THAT YOU HAVE READ THIS BOOK, YOU WILL BE PLEASED TO KNOW THAT IT…
who is the person who came up with the idea for the story and writes the text.
the publisher, the company that makes the book and brings it to you!
the illustrator, that is, the person who imagines the characters and the scenarios and draws all of them.
was written by… SAULO RIBAS
XAVIER BARTABURU
was illustrated by… FERNANDA RIBEIRO
was published by… PANGOLIN BOOKS
has the ISBN number… PRINTED BOOK - 978-65-85061-93-3 E-PUB - 978-65-85061-94-0 MOBI - 978-65-85061-95-7 PDF - 978-65-85061-90-2
is well explained here… www.pangolin-books.com
the publisher’s social networks information about the book and its authors.
which is the number that identifies the book anywhere in the world!
Making books, spreading reading!
Cleo and her friends, Tom and Pingo, are back on a fun new adventure. During a camping trip in the woods, Cleo goes through a mysterious transformation. She was no longer a girl with an alligator tail, but a full-blown Cuca from head to toe. She knew this would happen one day, but she still can’t hold back her tears. Cleo felt different and it seemed like the whole forest was talking to her. That’s when she heard a special call, the call of the sirens!
