Templar ISBN 9781787416857 £6.99
This is another delightful tale of a young boy and his grandfather written and illustrated by Sam Usher. In this adventure they are looking after a cat for the day. The young boy thinks that he knows how to look after the visitor, but this is not your average cat. It does not want to cuddle, eat, play or even have a snooze. When the cat escapes the humans find themselves on a quest to find her and have to fight their way through jungle, ruins, waterfalls and other imaginary obstacles before finding her and joining in a riotous party with other cats. They finally make their way home for a well-earned rest.
Sam Usher has created a magical world for his young hero and grandfather. They feature in a series of stories and I am very fond of “Snow”, but this book is a worthy successor. I particularly love the sheer energy that he brings to the illustrations and the contrasting styles between the sections in the house and those in the imaginary forest sequence. The author ranges from small quarter page illustrations up to big double page spread that really take you in to the story. The relationship between the child and adult is beautifully shown and really reflects the way that young children question things and want to find out. It will make a great read for those as young as nursery but it could even be used to discuss animal care for KS2 children who are about to get a pet.
Margaret Pemberton