To Catch a Cat

An interesting book I first encountered in a library but just had to get --- Leif Ericson, a prize-winning Norwegian Forest cat, has the same personality as my nephew's Maine Coon cat, and I fell in love with Leif the more I read. He is just the sort of cat to get through to the troubled Robin, patiently enduring the kid's attempts to care for him and keep him safe.

I enjoyed this book so much I read it twice. Told from an 11 year old's view of the world - unsettling, not only because Robin's Mom has remarried and extended her honeymoon, or because he has to live with his aunt Mags, and her boyfriend JOsh -- a loudmouth troublemaker -- but because in trying to prove himself to "the gang"'s peer pressure that fuels his need to "belong" and be accepted-- he breaks into a house to "borrow" the champion Norwegian Forest cat, stumbles onto a murder in progress, and in doing so, saves the cat from being victim #2. Robin must then not only keep the cat hidden, but not knowing if he was really identified by Nils, (the murderer) -- he must do all he can to avoid encountering Nils while trying to figure out how to bring him to justice. This book is for the most part, seen through Robin's eyes. Fearful of being identified by the murderer, and fearful of the cat's fate (Lief) should he be located, Robin nevertheless presses on and grows in responsibility and wisdom, despite all the mental and verbal abuse being hurled at him by Mags, Josh, and by Grandma's intrusive visit. The way Robin cares for Leif the cat -- clumsily at first, but always tender and caring -- interspersed with Ms Babson's wise words on cat care that everyone, child and adult, should know, goes hand in hand with the way he takes responsibility for his own actions, how he takes a younger friend and classmate under his wing, and how he slowly dis-entangles himself from the grip of the gang, while still retaining the friendship of the gang leader and his sister. And the cat, Leif, figures prominently as Robin's best friend and comforter. Robin and his friend camoflage Leif to make him look like a stray cat (although the spices thst they used could be toxic), while Nils, the murderer, goes around town trying to find the cat and do him in. The book is suspenseful and an enjoyable read. There is enough blood and gore to make the younger kiddies blanch, but the substantial part of the book is a really great read. The ending is masterful -- the kids, including the gang leader, all use their wits and compassion to save a potential murder victim (who seems to recover from a brutal beating pretty quickly! - but this is artistic license, and it works well in the story) AND to bring Nils the murderer to justice. Kudos to you, Marion Babson!

I have read several, but not all, of the books by Marian Babson. They follow the same pattern in that the police rarely play a major role and the reader usually knows "whodunnit" from the beginning. This book follows in the same manner. What makes Ms. Babson's writing so enjoyable is that no matter who the main character is, in this case an 11-year-old boy, she is able to make him/her believable. She knows exactly what the reactions would be appropriate for the profile of the character. I particularly enjoyed this book because I liked the main character, Robin. The way in which he protects the cat, going so far as to dye and cut its fur among other things, made me want to root for him. Looking forward to the next book from this imaginative author.

They knew he was afraid of heights, and that's why they set this up. If he wanted to be part of the gang he had to climb the tree, get in the house, grab Mrs. Nordling's show cat, and get out. He wants to belong somewhere so he takes his chances. What Robin experiences, no child should. During the unpleasant scene he rescues the cat, but ends up a witness to murder. He doesn't go to the police, but he does hide the cat. He deals with some unsavory people, including relatives. The murderer knows there was a witness; he chased him out of the house. Through the storyline he deals with covering the murder, finding the cat and the witness, and keeping a nosy neighbor at bay. Readers will know who the murderer is so there is no sleuth or mystery to solve; in fact the police don't play an active part in it, although they are mentioned. Being only 189 pages, it reads as a quick suspenseful story where the author takes the reader back and forth between Robin with his family and the murderer. Robin's life is heart wrenching, and although the path to which he got the cat was not good, having her in his life just might be.

Another gem from Marian Babson! The synopsis for this book is rather accurate so I'll stick to why I liked this mystery novel so much -- it was a really good read. "To Catah A Cat" is a very well written novel that deals, primarily, with kids who feel like outsiders, not quite belonging to any group or anyone; and who have to behave with a level of maturity that they shouldn't have to but which circumstances have forced upon them. And Marian Babson does a marvellous job at depicting the world of 11 year old Robin: a world in which he has been unceremoniously unloaded onto his young aunt, Mags, while his mother and her new husband have an extended honeymoon; a world in which he has, currently, very few friends, and in which he is very much resented by his aunt's live-in lover, Josh; and a world in which he is presently in trouble up to his eyeballs because he broke into the Nordling house in order to steal a valueable cat so that he could be part of a gang, and instead stumbled onto a murder scene. Robin doesn't have much faith in adults. From his outlook he has been severely let down by every adult in his life and he doesn't feel as if he could trust either Mags or Josh with the truth of what happened at the Nordling house. And so Robin soldiers on, trying to take care of the cat he rescued while he keeps an eye out, in case the murderer comes around looking for him. Babson also does a wonderful job at depicting the murderous rage and the cold bloodedness of the killer who tries to cover up what has occurrerd and who then sets about to try and track Robin and the cat. This is may not be a tension filled thriller, although there were some tense moments when it looked as if the murderer would give in to the rage and kill again, but this is definitely a well written book and a really enjoyable read.