3 out of 4 stars
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I am sure that some children, particularly animal lovers, will adore The Diary of a Snoopy Cat by R. F. Kristi. The narrator – Inca, a Siberian “kitty” - is a very engaging character, and her family and friends make up a good mix: male and female; feline, canine and human, and even rodent (Charlotte, the hamster). My favourite, though, is Inca's brother, Fromage, the cheese-eating tabby. In the run-up to Christmas, the gang set out to resolve a mystery and help a neighbour by finding a will that has apparently disappeared.
The main plot line takes quite a while to emerge – we're on page 58 before we get to the nub of the problem – but that's because the story is framed by a sub-plot about a missing neighbour. Conveniently, this gets the more expert detectives out of the way so that Inca and her gang can get to work. There is also a sub-sub-plot about the rather creepy person supposedly taking care of their friend Monk, a Blue Russian cat, while his owner is away.
Youngsters in the 6-8(ish) age bracket will probably enjoy hearing the story read to them, and may in any case need an adult on hand to help them keep track of the many characters. Slightly older and more confident readers will probably manage by themselves; the vocabulary can be challenging at times and some sentences are quite complex, but I like the fact that Kristi does not patronise her readers.
I have some reservations about the portrayal of the main villain – dubbed 'Stinky Porkster' by Inca. It's not so much that he's fat, which is quite common in children's book villains, but at one point he is described as “a mad demon” with “demonic eyes”. 'Well', you might say, 'what other kind of eyes would a demon have?' I know many children will happily consume whole books featuring demons (and daemons), but I think this book is aimed more at their younger brothers and sisters, and this kind of language seems out of place here. Having said that, with an adult reading it aloud, I doubt there would a problem.
One potential issue with coming to this book (which is number 5 in the Inca book series) as a new reader, is that there are a lot of characters to deal with: over 20, taking humans and animals together. No doubt, devoted followers of Inca will want to know what's going on with friends they've met in previous books - but, when you add in the complex plot, that's quite a lot to deal with. Although you could look at it another way and say that Kristi's certainly giving you your money's worth.
I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. It's an amusing and enjoyable detective story romp with charming illustrations (by Jorje Valle) but doesn't quite make it into the top rank, partly because of the rather rambling plot. What I liked most about it is that different characters learn to work together and everyone's contribution is recognised.
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Diary of a Snoopy Cat
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