My Walk to School Friends by Ed Boxall
When my son was small, I used to walk him to school. The journey always took longer than it should have. Partly, this was because he loved collecting every shiny scrap of metal, thingamajig and whatchamacallit he spotted on the ground. Mostly, though, it was because of the cats.
We had to say hello to every one of them. They all knew him. Some dozed on walls or bins; others stared from windows or padded gracefully towards us, tails swishing behind them. And, of course, there were occasionally cats we knew we really shouldn’t go near unless we wanted a scratch.
Bringing up children can often be hard. But even on the hardest days, though, my children showed me something I would have otherwise missed- like the cats you meet in my book, who I met because my son introduced me to them on our daily walks.
I have brought imagination and artistic licence to that lovely daily ritual. Believe it or not, we never met a cat who claimed to have been a pirate and fought a shark, or one who believed she was the Queen. Still, I think every cat has a touch of royalty. Like Belinda in my book, they often seem to gaze down on us lowly humans from above. Beowolf was completely real though- nothing made up about him:
Beowolf, Peel Street, Number 38,
Like a big grey cloud with a squirrel’s tail
When I stroke his tummy, he thunderously purrs,
But he’s a tiny skinny cat under all that fur.
My Walk to School Friends is, of course, a book about cats: a charming rhyming story filled with funny illustrations and details to revisit again and again. It is also about a child who notices the wonder in the world around him and is open to making friends with it, which I think is a good way to approach life!
My Walk to School Friends can be purchased from my website if you’d like a special signed and dedicated copy:
Children who love cats will love it…by I think all those grown ups who love cats will enjoy it too.
Find it in my bookshop!
