Jumble Cat by Archie Kimpton,
illustrator Kate Hindley (Hot Key Books)
PB
RRP $12.95
ISBN
978-1-4714-0278-4
Reviewed
by Jacque Duffy
Jumble Cat is a wicked romp of a story
full of … well, wickedness. I can imagine boys 8 – 12 years rolling around on
the floor in fits of laughter whilst reading this book.
Archie
Kimpton’s Jumble Cat is fart humour
with finesse. His way with words is nothing short of captivating. Not only are
his words as poetically jumbled as the Cat but the way he describes certain
characters is almost naughty.
The
main character Billy Slipper is normal enough in a Cinderella kind of way but oddly
enough, his best friend is a ninety something year old woman. Together they
befriend a foul mouthed jumbled–up cat and win thousands in prize money only to
have it stolen. They embark on an adventure scaling castle walls, stealing and
crashing his monstrous mother’s car, so they can rescue the grungy rude cat
from a demented taxidermist.
Archie’s writing is a delight to read, and
quite often I put my hand to my mouth in a No,
he didn’t just say that kind of way. This excerpt is Billy’s mother Phillipa
Slipper:
“Believe
it or not, Phillipa Slipper was in a good mood. She was always in a good mood
after her course. ‘Do you know what I learnt this evening?’ She twittered
excitedly. ‘How to kill butterflies. Do you know the best way to kill a
butterfly?’ She didn’t wait for an answer. ‘You could try a fly swatter, but
you might leave a terrible mark on the wall. So you can either suck them out of
the air with a vacuum cleaner, or if that doesn’t work, try catching them in a
jar, put the lid on and watch them suffocate. Simple! And no mess.”
Jumble Cat is Archie Kimpton’s first book and I
daresay not his last. The layout of the book is clean and easy to follow. Each
black and white illustration is strong and gives a less confident reader a well-deserved
rest.
Young
readers will enjoy this book and I very much enjoyed this book. I look forward
to reading more by this author.
Jacque Duffy is the author and illustrator of The Bear Said Please picture book and the
series ‘That’s not a …” learn to read
books used in all Queensland State Primary Schools and one local history coffee
table book.
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