KAT THE DOG by JO ALLEN.
Target Age ... Children, MG (8-12 years)
Genre ... Magical Realism
Publication Date ... 19th December 2024
Estimated Page Count ... 364 (quite large print and includes glossary)
Standalone First Book in a series
Purchase Link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0DR97Y8LN
The seventh daughter of a seventh daughter, gifted with magic powers from birth, Kat is destined to become leader of Dogsworld.
Queenie, Top Dog at Kymera, must keep the newborn safe from evil forces set on destroying her.
The pup bonds with Olivia, the orphaned granddaughter of Archie, who is in charge of Kymera, a magical realm, where dogs talk to each other and fairies, who inhabit the old willow tree, can grant wishes. But Kymera is in danger of being stolen away from them.
Kat, Olivia and the other dogs will do all they can to save their precious home.
The truly magical tail {sorry, I couldn't help myself} of seven pups, one of them with magical powers that though marketed as a children's read will I'm sure delight many of us grown-ups.
Okay, as an adult {albeit a young at heart one} to my mind the plot might have been a tad lacking in depth BUT the fact that the interplay between the dogs and their human 'caretakers' was engaging, the voices distinctive, the dialogue warm and witty ... Oh! and there were fairies, inhabitants of an old willow tree more than made up for any of the misgivings I may have had.
Marketed as being particularly suitable for mid-grade readers aged eight to twelve, at approximately 364 pages long, on the face of it what might be seen as a bit of a daunting undertaking to younger or less confident readers. However the text is large, there are the occasional full page illustrations, a family tree and an {at time humorous} glossary.
But what did my friend's 11 year old book dragon {I'm told by her that she is too old to be a book worm so a book dragon it is} think of Kat The Dog?
In her own words ...
I didn't want to put it down. Don't tell mam but I'd sometimes read some more under the covers using my torch when I was supposed to be asleep. {Come on mam we've all been there and done that 😂.}
Fun. I loved the mix of animals and humans, that it was part action and part magic.
The size of the book made it look grown-up compared to many books for kid's my age.
When she was a little girl, a voice in her head told her that she had to like dogs. That was when she was about five years old and didn't know any dogs. Then a family moved in next door with a little heeler-cross called Trixie. Remembering the voice in her head, Jo tried to like Trixie, but it wasn't easy. Trixie would run up to her wagging her tail, then she'd roll on to her back, still wagging her tail, asking for her tummy to be tickled. Jo would oblige, and then Trixie would try and bite her. Not the best start.
But Jo didn't forget about the voice and, when she was 8 years old, she went down to the local kennels, where she met Jim, who was very kind with her and they became friends. Jo's love of dogs began to grow. She went to the kennels whenever she had any spare time and decided she would like to own her own kennels one day.
At the age of about ten, she went to a garden fete with her best friend, where she met Lassie, her first dog, and decided to bring her home. Her mum and dad weren't too chuffed, but they soon fell in love with Lassie.
Life took over and, instead of following a career with dogs, Jo went to university to study languages and then moved abroad for a few years. But she missed England and eventually came back home, trained to become an acupuncturist and herbalist, and started going back to the kennels again. Of course, she was older and Jim was older, but the friendship was still strong. And then Kat was born and Jo decided to write about her.
So there you have it. I'm Kat's great grandson and Peggy, who lived with us, was her great granddaughter. But I'm the one most like Kat. I used to be very feisty and sometimes even growl at Mum. But she knew I didn’t mean it. I would never bite her of course, but I’d sometimes have a go at poor Peggy instead (I am a Jack Russell after all). I’m much quieter now, but still going strong at the grand old age of seventeen, probably because Mum feeds me herbs and other goodies, and even occasionally sticks needles in me, which I don’t especially like, but she tells me it’s good for me. And mums always know best!
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With thanks to Rachel of Rachel's Random Resources for organising a paper copy. One of several bloggers participating in the Blog Tour of this book, agree or disagree with me, all opinions are my own; no financial compensation was asked for nor given; threats of violence towards my favourite teddy bear went unheeded as did promises of chocolate.
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