Indigo Blue

Indigo's mum has had it with her boyfriend, and has moved her girls out of their cozy home and into "the flat from hell." Indie is not about to show anyone how it really feels, especially not her best friend, Jo. But the truth is, the neighborhood is bad, the heat's useless, and there's little to eat. It's hard for Indie to ignore such a drastic change—but with a little sister who's too small to understand and a mum who's feeling desperate, Indie is the one who's got to take charge.

From School Library Journal

Grade 4-7–Indigo, 11, is a super-responsible kid with a weak, unstable mother. She tries to take care of her toddler sister and to ignore the fights between Mum and her abusive, live-in boyfriend. She attempts to fit in with her more conventional classmates, cope with a strict teacher, and enjoy time with her friend Jo. Life is bearable until Max's bad temper turns physical and Mum flees with the children to a dilapidated basement flat with a dour and suspicious landlady. Things get even more complicated when Jo turns temperamental and tryouts for the school play add a competitive aspect to many of the kids' relationships. For a story filled with problems, this is a surprisingly bright book, with a sympathetic main character and an absorbing plot. The first-person, present-tense narration grounds events with a straightforward immediacy, as does the emphasis on physical details, from nail polish to foods to the smell of mold in the apartment. Yes, Indigo learns to face her feelings rather than hide from them. She also learns the meaning of true friendship. Cassidy seems more committed to telling Indigo's story than hitting readers over the head with a message. A British import with a refreshingly light touch.
–Lauralyn Persson, Wilmette Public Library, IL
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Gr. 5-8. Eleven-year-old Indigo doesn't know what to think when her mother moves her and her baby sister, Misti, out of their cozy home and into an old, dirty flat. She knows it has something to do with the sometimes-violent fights between Mom and her boyfriend, Max, but what is she supposed to say at school? What with leaving Max and trying to pull herself together, Indigo's mother seems about to break, and Indigo knows she has to help, even though she has problems of her own: the starring role in the school play, a boy with a crush, and a friend turned jealous and mean seemingly overnight. This British story of domestic abuse is firmly child-centered, and Indigo's confusion and fear, as well as her divided loyalty between Max and her mother, are sensitively portrayed. Cassidy makes Indigo's school troubles as important as her personal ones, and Indigo's simple, direct voice keeps the story from becoming message-driven and sentimental. The hopeful ending rings true.
Krista Hutley
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Hi there!

It’s a typical Scottish summer day here – grey clouds, drizzle, midgies and just a sliver of sunshine peeping through. It’s not exactly the Costa del Sol, but who cares?

It’s a perfect daydreaming day – and for me, dreaming is just a step away from writing.
Indigo Blue
is my second book, all about a girl called Indie who loves to daydream. When one thing in Indie’s life goes pear-shaped, a whole raft of other stuff follows – and no amount of dreaming can fix it all up.

I hope you enjoy
Indigo Blue
. Here’s to daydreams, friendship, strawberry laces and hot chocolate with melted marshmallows, which can help you through the worst of times – promise!

Best wishes,

Cathy Cassidy

xxxx

cathycassidy.com

Books by Cathy Cassidy

DIZZY
DRIFTWOOD
INDIGO BLUE
SCARLETT
SUNDAE GIRL
LUCKY STAR

PUFFIN

PUFFIN BOOKS

Published by the Penguin Group
Penguin Books Ltd, 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, USA
Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M4P 2Y3
(a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.)
Penguin Ireland, 25 St Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2, Ireland (a division of Penguin Books Ltd)
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(a division of Pearson Australia Group Pty Ltd)
Penguin Books India Pvt Ltd, 11 Community Centre, Panchsheel Park, New Delhi – 110 017, India
Penguin Group (NZ), 67 Apollo Drive, Rosedale, North Shore 0632, New Zealand
(a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd)
Penguin Books (South Africa) (Pty) Ltd, 24 Sturdee Avenue, Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196, South Africa

Penguin Books Ltd, Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England

puffinbooks.com

First published 2005
17

Copyright © Cathy Cassidy, 2005
All rights reserved

The moral right of the author has been asserted

Except in the United States of America, this book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, re-sold, hired out, or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

ISBN: 978-0-14-192603-2

Thanks!

To Liam, for endless encouragement, patience and healthy dinners, and to Cal and Caitlin for their inspiration, enthusiasm and ability to survive on cheese butties and loud music when things get seriously busy. Thanks to Catriona, fab first-reader, and to Mum, Dad, Andy, Lori, Joan, Mary-Jane, Fiona, Helen, Sheena, Martyn, Zarah and all my wonderful friends for the support, the pep-talks, the shopping trips and the chocolate. Also to Paul, for creating such a cool website for me.

Thanks to Tallulah and Roxanne,
Indigo Blue’s
first ‘real’ readers, and to the best ever agent, Darley Anderson, for believing in it all. Big hugs all round to Rebecca, Francesca, Adele, Nick, Shannon and the whole Puffin team for making it happen, and to Julia and Lucie at the agency. Who says dreams don’t come true?

I’m never late for school.

I leave home around eight o’clock on a school-day morning, even though it only takes five minutes on the bus, fifteen if I’m walking. And that’s if I’m walking slowly, maybe stopping at Singhs for a penny chew or a look at the comics.

I’m almost always the first person to get here, even before Billy, the janitor, who comes at half eight to open up. Sometimes he lets me in for a warm by the big old-fashioned radiators, but mostly I just sit on the little wall at the edge of the playground and dream.

My friend Jo goes to gymnastics and swimming club. She reads teen magazines and scary books and collects beanie animals and she’s learning to play the violin. She has loads of hobbies. I don’t do all that stuff – my only real hobby is daydreaming. It’s something that never lets you down, because it’s free and it’s easy and I’m in charge of what happens.

Sometimes I sit on the wall and imagine that this is the day the circus will come to town, right into the school playground. Acrobats, trapeze artistes and clowns will cartwheel and strut across the footy pitch. We’ll all learn to paint our faces, ride a unicycle and balance on one leg on a galloping horse – better than fractions, spelling tests and getting picked last for the netball team.