I was so excited to read To Be A Cat by Matt Haig and fortunately, it lived up to all my expectations. To Be A Cat ticks all the boxes if you’re looking for a book that’s funny, action-packed and full of furry animals. The story takes place over a couple of days and features rapid chase scenes, amazing transformations and life-changing epiphanies. What more can one ask for? To Be A Cat was a really fantastic story; I finished it in one sitting.Barney’s life is not going well. He’s being bullied by a horrible boy called Gavin Needle. Mrs Whipmire, the mean head teacher is constantly picking on him for things he didn’t even do and there’s been no sign of his dad for months. On top of all that, his mum’s always rushed off her feet. All this leads Barney to wish for an easier life- like a cat’s. Soon, Barney gets his wish, but will he live to regret it?Though this story takes place over a couple of days, Barney learns a lot about himself in that short time. He learns so many important life lessons such as to be careful for what you wish for. Barney quickly realises that to be a cat isn’t as great as he’d thought it would be- certainly not with Mrs Whipmire and Gavin Needle on his tail!This book was really suspenseful. People aren’t who you think they are.To Be A Cat by Matt Haig had loads of great twists and turns. Children will love this book because it is full of humour, action and interesting interludes from the author. I was laughing throughout the story and I believe everyone will enjoy it immensely. I wholly recommend To Be A Cat. You must read it to find out if cats really do have nine lives! Although I knew To Be A Cat is aimed at a younger audience than the books I would normally read, I loved The Radleys so was determined to give it a go anyway. I'm glad I did. Having always had cats in our family, Haig drew me in by telling me that cats are magical. The book starts off with a fantastic list of the reasons why cats are magical and the different things that they can do and I loved this. Even before the story had begun, this book had a real fun and light-hearted feel to it. I was sat giggling at the things that cats do and couldn't help but think of my own cats in these situations. For anyone who owns cats, you will instantly be hooked just because of this list. Barney was a wonderful character. Only just turning 12 years old, he is so amazingly innocent. All Barney really wants is to have a happy life again, back when his Dad was around but instead he gets bullied and has a terrible time at school. When his birthday doesn't go as planned and he has the worst day at school, everything changes for Barney and this is where the story begins. Instead of waking up the next day as normal, he instead wakes up in the body of a cat. Secondary characters like best friend Rissa and head teacher Miss Whipmire gave the story so much depth. These characters were completely in a league of their own and they were a fantastic contrast to Barney, who I was rooting for from the very beginning. I loved, loved, loved how evil Miss Whipmire was and her reasons behind being this way. Although I knew there was a twist in the book, I wasn't quite ready for it to be this but it was certainly genius from Haig. The story throughout was fun and exciting and something completely different. I loved the idea that cats and humans could switch bodies. I do love a good body swap film so to have it in a book with such a massive twist was great for me. I have never read a book so original. At the same time as being so creative, Haig managed to keep the story accessible to readers of all ages and I really do think that it will appeal to so many different people. I know both my older sister and my Mum would both love to read this. Freaky Friday with cats... what more could you want?!
What do You think about To Be A Cat (2012)?
I thought it was great and it has an awesome ending your sincerely,Jessica
—moscow_chic
