Her children’s books cover the age range of six to early teenage. It seems obvious to her which story ideas will be for children and which for adults. Children like to read about things that are ‘profoundly interesting’ to them and that are imaginative. They like jokes and they love books where children are resourceful and have the possibility of adventure. Helen reflects that it can be easier for characters to have a degree of freedom when the story is set in the past, around the time she herself was young, as children’s lives now seem more restricted. ‘Nobody was on your back in the same way they are now’, she says. ‘Children mixed with a wider group of adults then and were thought to be more capable of looking after themselves.’ She will introduce serious subjects – Amina’s Blanket, for example, is about a girl who becomes a refugee – but only on a level that children can relate to. It is more important that the books are entertaining and interesting than that they teach readers about complex issues. Tara’s Tree House, the book that will be read by younger children as part of the Great Reading Adventure, tells of a young girl who resents being sent to her nan’s flat for six weeks while her mother is in hospital. She learns about other children who have been separated from their families but also has fun playing in a tree house built especially for her. The book refers to the evacuees of World War Two, as does the book to be used by older children, Nina Bawden’s Carrie’s War. The Siege, the book for adults, includes a scene set during the chaotic attempt to evacuate the children of Leningrad. This is a topic that could encourage children to talk to older people in Bristol about their experiences of being evacuated. In a few years, such stories will be lost from living memory and it is important that they are passed down the generations. The fear of displacement and of being separated from a familiar world is one to which all age groups can relate. In 2004, Helen signed an agreement with Collins Children’s Books to write a new trilogy of adventure books aimed at nine to 12 year olds. The story is set in Cornwall and under the sea, as two children of the Air world meet two children of the Mer world. She has completed the first volume, Ingo, which will be published in hardback in September 2005. Fans of her previous trilogy set in Cornwall featuring the friends Zillah and Katie say: ...a fantastic book. It’s really exciting because strange things happen in it. I think Helen Dunmore makes up great stories with interesting secrets. Dunmore is a wonderful storyteller. ...well-written, funny and sad too. ...lively and thoughtful. A thrilling book with a kind hearted and scary theme. MUST READ BOOK. [Katie and Zillah] are two utterly believable child characters whose emotions leap off the page. Emotional issues such as bereavement and adult/child relationships add depth to the main plot. The characters are believable and their emotions and concerns well expressed… A satisfying story for girls of a similar age to the protagonist. For further reading, see the section on Helen’s childhood influences and her writing for children in the readers’ guide.