Allan Ahlberg has been one of Britain’s most popular children’s writers for more than twenty years.  His gently humorous stories give a quirky look at everyday life and his Jolly Postman books are classics.   

The cat who got carried away is the third of his books about the Gaskitt family, a nearly normal family expecting their third child any day.  Their cat Horace gets caught up in a “Grand and Gripping Adventure” when it happens to notice an old man pushing a pram but, strangely, the pram is barking! 

And so begins a mad search and chase throughout the town.  There are missing penguins, a very big Phys Ed teacher who loves running, a great escape and, naturally, the new baby decides to come. 

The partnership between text and pictures is outstanding.  Katherine McEwen’s illustrations and design add even more life to the story with a jumble of pictures, maps, timetables and diagrams wandering through the text as the action heats up.  The eleven short chapters break the action into manageable bites for a young audience as well as helping to build the suspense. 

The cat who got carried away is a lot of fun.  Like the other two Gaskitt stories, The man who wore all his clothes and The woman who won things, it gives young readers an excellent bridge between picture books and full novels.

Review by David Beagley

© 2003 David Beagley