Reviewed by Susan Hancy
Skippy
Blackfeet
is a delightful junior fiction novel about a starving, stray cat who is adopted
by 8-year-old May. My daughter pounced on this book as soon as she saw the
front cover and devoured it in two days - a record for her. So naturally, that
got me wondering why she loved it so much.
Told
from Skippy’s point of view, Skippy is living in a quiet cemetery, beneath a
pleasant agapanthus bush. There he’s safe from the noise and chaos outside the
fence, but he is so hungry that he can’t remember the last time he ate. When he
hears May crying because she’s lost, he comforts her and the two are instantly
attracted to each other. When May’s mother finds her, May begs to bring Skippy
home with them and her mother acquiesces. Skippy’s subsequent experiences
living with May and her parents transform him from being alone and scared
of the world to feeling loved, safe and important as he realises that he helps
May as much as she helps him.
The
book consists of three stories, each with short and easy-to-read chapters. The
illustrations by Jennifer Horn are cute and whimsical. Rebecca Fraser’s
portrayal of Skippy Blackfeet’s thoughts and feelings at each new encounter
captures how I’d imagine my own cats view the world and makes the perfect
reading material for 6 to 9-year-old girls who love pets – especially cats!
When my daughter was telling me how she was worried about what was going to
happen to Skippy during one of his experiences, I knew this book was a winner
for its intended audience.
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