Penguin the cat, belongs solely to Alfie Seton. Or at least, that is what Alfie believes things are like in Holly Webb’s children’s storybook – “A Cat Called Penguin”.
Alfie found his beloved cat two years ago at his front doorstep, looking rather skinny. But thanks to all those king-sized meals Alfie fed it. The cat was getting flabbier each day. The lustrous black fur, the glistening white chest-to-belly part, and the bulging body he was gaining, made him look more like a penguin than a cat. Hence Alfie thought, calling the cat “Penguin” was not at all absurd. No matter what the rest of the world thought. Penguin and Alfie have been best friends from the past two years. Starting from sleeping together to sneaking into the next door garden, they have always been with each other. Penguin knew how dearly Alfie loved him. The amount of care and affection Alfie had for him was irreplaceable by anyone else on earth. That is exactly the case until; a new girl of Alfie’s age comes along with her mother to stay with her grandmother next door. The very next door where Alfie and Penguin have been sneaking in for a long time! Long enough to make themselves a tree house on an apple tree.
Grace, the new girl – stubborn but very smart little lass – catches Alfie in her gran’s garden and asks him to get lost! Good thing that it was not enough for the two kids to become archenemies. As the story proceeds Penguin gets way closer to Grace, than could be tolerated by Alfie. This is where the story mainly begins. Where does all this lead Alfie, Grace, and Penguin?
Want to know how the story ends? Why not make your kid read the book out to you and find out? This story will definitely make them learn, how they can share something of theirs with someone without regretting it. They will realize that they don’t really have to force someone to be, or not to be their friends – a common perception in every kid’s mind
A very effective way to making them “realize” what it is like to be friends, can be through a story like this! Reading storybooks just like this one – which emphasizes more on sharing, friendship, and caring – opens up a whole new world for children.
Then again, this story might turn out to be a bit boring in the middle for your kid – if he/she is a nifty little one. They might just find the story name not suitable for the story at all! Just like, I did not. But if they manage to get hold of the story rather than bothering about the name, I bet they’ll be enjoying themselves quite a lot. So why not give it a try to make your kids read about care and friendship? Till then, happy reading!