This standalone feline adventure will have huge appeal to animal lovers, and it makes a refreshing change that cats rather than dogs are centre stage.
Historically, cats have been subject to persecution, for example when they were associated with witches and blamed for the Black Death and in our time, they were under threat during the Covid pandemic. In the climate changed future, birdlife has declined and again cats are blamed.
The story is entirely told from the cat’s perspective, with the cat in question told by his mama that he is descended from the Egyptian God Bastet and that his destiny is to change the world. Yet he is the last of the litter to find a home and is then christened Pusskin by his new owner Lottie, but the cats he meets, rapidly learn not to be misled by the less than princely name. He soon has his humans exactly where he wants them and begins to rule the other cats in the cul- de-sac where they live.
The cat perspective as a hunter is very clearly put, sometimes disturbingly so, but it is a strength that these are not anthropomorphised animals. When the government curfew restrictions fail to have the desired effect and other deadly actions are being enforced, Pusskin leads the local cats in a bold escape. An elderly cat with The Sight tells them they must head for Cat Island where they could live safely. (An afterword explains the real life inspiration for this island.)
Their epic journey, aided by the heartbroken Lottie and other cat supporters is thrilling, but faced with the reality of what they find on the island , Pusskin must fight to live up to his mama’s prediction. His story certainly makes for a thoroughly engrossing and very satisfying read.
Beautiful and heart-achingly sad animal adventure with cats and a strong environmental message. Perfect for fans of Michael Morpurgo, Sarah Lean and Hannah Gold's The Last Bear...
Pusskin has always lived with his loving owner, eleven-year-old Lottie. The bond between them is unbreakable, or so they both thought. But when the bird and insect populations are depleted, cats are made a scapegoat. Keen to protect his cat friends on the cul-de-sac, Pusskin sets off on a journey that will take them to a hidden island at the furthest reaches of the country.
When Lottie tries to bring him home, she soon comes to realise that for Pusskin to have any chance of survival, she'll have to let him go. Could this be their final goodbye?
'Captures the magic that animals bring to our lives.' - Sarah Ann Juckes, author of The Night Animals
Author
About Stacy Gregg
The author of seventeen books, Stacy Gregg has reinvigorated the pony genre with her two popular series Pony Club Secrets and Pony Club Rivals.
Stacy Gregg understands the desperation of wannabe horsey girls who want a pony of their own. She spent many frustrating horse-less years training her bewildered dog to showjump in the back yard until her parents gave in and she got her first pony – a sway-backed brown mare named Bonnie. She currently rides a rather uppity, difficult chestnut gelding called Jasper and dreams of owning a posh Andalusian stallion.
A former high-profile fashion editor (she was a judge on the New Zealand version of TV’s Next Top Model and editor-at-large of Fashion Quarterly Magazine), Gregg has no regrets about trading her Christian Louboutins for life in gumboots. She lives in Auckland with her partner Michael, their nine-year-old daughter and assorted animals.
