The Mousehole Cat

My grandson (6) loved this book and I recommend it to all children of whatever age

After 30 years the style Nicola Bayley has employed is dateless and as fresh to look at as it was 30 years ago.

Fabulous thanks

Bought for my granddaughter. A good tale for those who love Cornwall and cats.

This is a beautiful story with wonderful illustrations. I remembered the story from my childhood and wanted to buy a copy for my children. Unfortunately this 30th anniversary hardback edition has ruined the art work with its very poor quality print. The images actually look drab and fuzzy around the edges. I ordered the paperback version instead and the difference is huge. The illustrations on the hardback (top of photo) are grey and blurry compared to the paperback version (bottom) which has much richer colour and cleaner image resolution. Definitely buy the paperback version instead of this one!

My youngest daughter bought me this book and then had a tussle with herself as to whether to give it to me or keep it. It is a treasured possession that lives on my sailboat, in Guatemala, and evokes memories of childhood holidays in Cornwall. It is a glimpse into the soul of England.When a friend showed me a painting her husband had bought I exclaimed "Mousehole, it's Mousehole!"She didn't know the story of The Mousehole Cat so I ordered it for her husband's Christmas present to go with the painting.it's the sort of book you can get right into with no effort at all. You smell the fish and feel the slippery cobbles under your feet as the story unfolds. The cold Atlantic Storm cat rises up and toys with the fragile fisherman's boat as he braves the seas to fish so that the Mousehole children don't go hungry over Christmas. But the fisherman has his gallant cat Mowzer with him and she calms the storm cat singing to him the way she did to her kittens. Every house in the village lit candles in their windows to help the fisherman find his way home.Even now every Christmas in Mousehole lights are still put in all the windows to light the way home for the fishermen and anyone in danger at sea. Folk from all over Cornwall travel to Mousehole to see the lights and remember the courage of the fisherman and Mowzer.This is a lovely Christmas book and a must if you are visiting Cornwall.

This is a simply told and charming story. Well worth the read. The picture reproductions are dreadful. Note, not the actual pictures, but their journey to the page. They hackle with noise - almost as if someone pressed ‘add noise’ in Photoshop! And the back cover picture is truly atrocious. The publishers have taken a sea segment from one of the interior pages and blown it up, resulting in a pixelated mess. I’ve never seen anything so amateurish. Such a pity. Fortunately the graphics cannot take away from a truly lovely story.

I've had this book for years but was reminded of it today and had to give the author and illustrator their due with a 5 star review.I bought it for myself because I fell in love with the artwork - the illustrations are exquisite and evocative and I'd happily frame them and put them up around the house.The story is the equal of those glorious paintings. The language is calming with an almost hypnotic rhythm and the story is pure magic. Just like The Velveteen Rabbit I am always in floods of happy tears at the end. Mowser is a very special cat indeed!This is a book you will want to treasure way past your childhood,.it is a work of beauty through and through.