In this picturebook Janik Coat represents the crisis of a family pet after the introduction of a firstborn child. The family cat knows something is amiss – can the reader work out what? As the couple’s pregnancy develops, the cat grows more and more anxious, before disappearing into the nearby woods as the birth approaches. With the new baby at home, the cat is nowhere to be seen until a surprise appears at the front door. The cat has also had offspring, and the tale concludes with the new baby and the new kittens sharing the same space, while the two new mothers bond, cat and human alike. Boldly told in vibrantly coloured cut-out illustrations, this picturebook creates a story with several points of dialogue for the younger reader: fear of change and the unknown, the relationship between cats and humans across time and in different cultures, and the social dynamics of family in a contemporary domestic environment.
