I Was a Rat! Or, The Scarlet Slippers

Oct 9, 2024 11:25 PM

Author:Philip Pullman,Peter Bailey,Robert Glenister

Brought to you by Penguin.

I was a Rat! Roger insists, and insists . . . In fact, when Bob the cobbler and his washerwoman wife, Joan, find the young boy abandoned on their doorstep, these are the only words he says. And he does have ratty behaviour, it's true.

Staying with Bob and Joan, however, Roger learns quickly to behave more like a human child. They try to find his parents, but the orphanage, police and hospital all have nothing on their records about a lost boy in the city. What is the truth? As more and more people find out about Roger the mysterious rat-boy he faces more and more danger. But sometimes help comes from the most unexpected of places . . .

Reviews

[A] perfectly shaped story . . . a fairy tale, an adventure, a parody and certainly a book that shines

—— Literacy and Learning

Fairy tale, satire, slapstick humour and suspenseful melodrama . . . a glorious tale

—— Guardian

A comic genius of children's fiction

—— The Times

Wildly exciting and wickedly whimsical.

—— Hana Tooke, author of The Unadoptables

An absolutely enchanting tale.

—— Tamzin Merchant, author of The Hatmakers

Both a celebration of a Christmas classic while also being a magical adventure all of its own. Heart-warming, incredibly funny, and action-packed, it's a story that truly captures the spirit of Christmas

—— Anna James

Catherine Doyle has done the impossible - she has breathed new life into this much loved and oft retold story, sprinkling it with her inimitable warmth, charm, and humour. This vividly exciting and poignant retelling made me believe in magic as fervently as I did when I was a child. It is, to my mind, destined to become a Christmas classic

—— Louise O'Neill

A charming reimagining of one of my favourite childhood reads, managing to be both heart-warmingly familiar, and refreshingly new at the same time. It's filled with miracle-making curiosities, a delightfully bonkers cast, a purple reindeer with a grudge, and a quest to mend two very broken hearts. All-in-all, a magical whirlwind of an adventure filled with heart, hilarity, and miraculous mayhem

—— Hana Tooke

Delightfully festive . . . Warm, imaginative, and brimming with Christmas magic

—— Carlie Sorosiak

This reimagining of A Christmas Carol is simply spellbinding

—— iNews

This is a beautiful, magical adventure

—— Tricia Adams , Lovereading4kids

A dazzling feat of imagination. Enchanting: I was bewitched

—— Saga Magazine

Catherine Doyle's delightful novel moves deftly from melancholy to "jolly holly", genial all the way

—— Financial Times

An instant Christmas classic

—— The Irish Times

Action-packed, full of imagination...uplifting

—— The Independent

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