This book was soo much fun!  It really was the kind of book you can’t recommend highly enough–and it’s rather telling that when I brought it home I was already a few pages in ’cause I’d read a bit in the car…and didn’t read another word for several days.

How is that high praise, you’d like to know?  Aren’t great books the ones that are impossible to put down?  Well, I didn’t put it down voluntarily!  It’s harder to keep reading when your kids steal it from you–first the daugher, then the son.  And they kept stealing it form each other, too.  The poor book ping-ponged back and forth between their bedrooms over the next few days while our table talk consisted of–

‘Have you read the part where–‘

‘No, I haven’t, so don’t tell me!’

By the time I reclaimed my prize my expectation level was pretty high, and the book didn’t disappoint.  It’s full title is ‘The Cheshire Cheese Cat: A Dickens of a Tale’ and it’s set in one of Dicken’s favorite London pubs, Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese.  The main characters are a scrappy alley cat named Skilley, and Pip, the mouse.

But this is quite different from any Cat and Mouse story you might be expecting.  Ms. Deedy and Mr. Wright have outdone themselves. Sophisticated, but charming.  Hilariously funny, while poignant and thought provoking.  This really is a book for everyone…as I’m sure Apricot-kitty will agree.

“Uhm, no?  Have you forgotten that you speak to The Queen Mouser?  Skilley really is a very confused cat, and no book will ever get four stars from me if it has a mouse as a main character.  However, I did find the story-telling engaging, and I must say that I’d be willing to try some of that cheese.  Provided I didn’t have to bargain for it with a mouse, of course.”

Well, I still plan to pick up a copy for the family (Christmas?) and have added Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese to my must-see places!  Miss Apricot can just stay home.

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