The Cat Mummy is a story which focuses on the main character Verity who has sadly lost her mother at a young age. She lives with her grandmother, grandfather and her father and her cat Mabel who is very old. Verity's mother died when she was a baby and although she is desperate to find out more about her mother she is terrified that the sensitive subject will upset her family. She feels that the only one she can speak to about her mother is her cat Mabel. Unfortunately because of Mabel's age she is very ill and Verity begins to show signs of anger towards Mabel because she has been sick all over the floor. As a result of Verity's anger Mabel runs away and cannot be found anywhere. When Verity finally finds Mabel it is too late because Mabel had died and she decides to keep this a secret from everyone. At school Verity had been learning about the ancient egyptians and how they use to preserve people and cats when they died. This gave Verity an idea to try and use what she learnt at school and try and make her cat into a mummy. After a few days Verity's grandmother realises that there is something wrong with Verity and she notices the bad smell which is coming from her bedroom. When her grandmother finds the cat wrapped in bandages Verity explains that she did not want to bury her cat the same way her mother is buried. At the end of the book Verity comes to terms with the fact that she has to bury her cat. She also expresses her fear of death and burials to her father who then learns to understand that Verity needs to be able to speak to someone about her worries. This is a sad story and it shows the perspective of death from a young persons point of view. It showed the fear that Verity has and the thoughts that she has when it comes to death and burials. The story can relate to many young people who have had pets who have died and it can teach them that even though this is a sad time that they can use different ways of coping with berevement. For example Verity had a tough time speaking about death because of the fear of upsetting her family. However by the end of the book Verity and her father learn that they both need to talk about things, which made them feel better and have a better understanding about coping with death.I really enjoyed this book as it lets the reader undrestand the different ways some people may deal with death of someone close to you. I also enjoyed the happy ending of the book as you saw Verity finally having the chance to find out more about her mother.
Verity mempunyai kucing bernama Mabel yang telah dipelihara oleh ibunya sejak ibunya menikah dengan ayahnya. Suatu saat Mabel sakit dan menghilang. Verity, ayahnya, kakek dan neneknya ikut mencari Mabel ke semua tempat. Secara tak sengaja Verity menemukan Mabel di dalam lemarinya, mati. Ia sangat sedih kehilangan Mabel. Seketika dia teringat pelajaran di sekolah tentang orang mati Mesir yang diawetkan menjadi mumi. Ia pun kemudian membuat mumi Mabel menggunakan pita dan garam mandi berbau lavender, lalu menyimpannya di dalam tas serut kesayangannya. Verity merahasiakan hal itu dari orang serumah.Hingga suatu saat bau bangkai Mabel semakin kuat. Ia akhirnya tidak bisa lagi menyimpan rahasia itu. Neneknya kemudian menemukan Mabel di dalam tas serut di dalam lemari. Mereka lalu menguburkan Mabel.Buku ini lucu dan menarik bagi anak-anak, terlebih untuk mendidik mereka tentang hewan peliharaan. Bahkan bagi orang dewasa sekali pun. Saya jadi teringat akan semua kucing-kucing saya yang masih hidup maupun sudah mati. Bahwa sebenarnya, sekecil apa pun peran seekor hewan peliharaan di rumah kita, ia akan selalu meninggalkan kenangan manis dan hiburan untuk kita. Saya sangat menyayangi mereka. Barangkali suatu saat kelak, kita bisa membuat sebuah buku khusus yang bercerita tentang kucing-kucing kita, seperti yang Verity lakukan dan ayahnya lakukan ketika membuat buku tentang Mabel dan ibunya yang sudah meninggal.Lewat buku ini kita belajar, seremeh-remehnya seekor kucing di mata orang lain, sangat berarti bagi yang memeliharanya. Kucing yang ada di rumah kita telah menghibur kita, menelurkan tawa kita saat mereka bermain-main bergelantungan di gorden, atau berkejaran di rumah, atau menggaruk-garuk kursi dan kayu, atau sebatas bercengkerama dengan kita. Mereka menghibur kita, meninggalkan kebahagiaan tersendiri bagi pemiliknya.I love my cats (Bimo, Tammy, Ulong, Beltig, Ndung, Bumbum, dsb) ^^PS: sebaiknya bagi anak muslim, membaca buku ini didampingi orangtua agar bisa menjelaskan yang benarnya terkait mitos Mesir kuno dan hal-hal lainnya supaya anak-anak tidak terjatuh pada kemusyrikan.
What do You think about The Cat Mummy (2002)?
A very sweet story about a young girl Verity whose cat, Mabel dies of old age. Verity feels guilty for not appreciating Mabel enough when she was alive and tries to preserve Mabel as a mummy after learning in school how the Ancient Egyptians did so with their cats. The story tells of Verity's quest to try to conceal Mabel in her wardrobe away from her father and grandparents as she does not want to bury Mabel in the garden under the 'dirty earth' with the worms and in the dark! Eventually with the discovery of Mabel by Verity's grandmother, the family learn to deal with the underlying issue of the death of Verity's mum who died at childbirth. An insightful story which handles bereavement from a child's perspective very sensitively. A must-read!
—Elishia
When Verity's old cat Mabel dies, Verity is filled with both grief and remorse, having shouted at the cat earlier on in the week for being sick, and then never getting a chance to make up. Determined to make up for it now, Verity decides to mummify Mabel and keep her forever. There follows some genuinely funny moments where Verity tries to preserve the cat in lavender bath salts, and keep her in her wardrobe, but underlying the humour, of course, is a moving understanding of how children are aff
—Seonaid
Verity tinggal bersama Dad, Gran dan Grandadnya. Ibunya meninggal pada saat Verity dilahirkan. Salah satu peninggalan ibunya adalah seekor kucing bernama Mabel.Pada suatu hari Mabel menghilang. Verity sangat sedih karena sebelum Mabel menghilang Verity sempat berlaku kasar pada Mabel.Setelah beberapa hari dicari, Verity menemukan Mabel di dalam lemari bajunya dalam keadaan mati.Karena merasa kehilangan dan juga merasa bersalah karena tindakan kasarnya kepada Mabel, Verity lalu mempunyai ide untuk membuat Mabel menjadi mumi. Ide ini muncul karena pada saat itu Miss Smith, guru Verity, sedang membahas tentang Mesir Kuno.Usaha Verity membuat Mabel menjadi mumi tentu saja gagal. Gran menemukan 'mumi' Mabel dan akhirnya Mabel dikubur di dalam peti perkakas milik Grandad.Kematian Mabel membuat Dad jadi menyadari bahwa kehilangan seseorang atau sesuatu pasti akan dirasakan oleh semua orang. Yang jadi masalah bukanlah karena kita ditinggal, tapi bagaimana kita dapat meneruskan hidup kita setelah kita ditinggal.
—Chiquita Hindarto
