A Detective Who Is Also a Cat
It starts with a little idea…
Lando (child)“Can the detective be a cat? With that hat. He follows footprints but they’re his own. Ha. And the bell’s gone, so they can’t do story time. A bird’s got it, I think.”
The bookshop bell has vanished. Pip has until four o’clock to find it, and his first clue is not quite what he thinks.
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The missing bell
At four o’clock, the bookshop bell rang for story time. But today, it was gone. Mabel Mouse stood on the doorstep with her book. “No bell means nobody will know,” she said. Pip straightened his detective hat. “I’ll find it before four.”
Follow the paws
Muddy pawprints crossed the square. Pip followed them to the fish stall. He sniffed a very good sniff. Then he looked at his own muddy paws. “Oh,” he said. “These are mine.” Mabel shut her notebook. “Let’s try a different clue.”
A little blue clue
Beside the empty hook lay a blue thread and one small feather. “The bell had a blue ribbon,” said Mabel. “I tied it on this morning.” Pip lifted the feather. Something rustled above the bookshop window. Both detectives looked up.
Listen
A robin popped out of the ivy. “Have you seen a blue ribbon?” asked Pip. The robin darted back inside. Pip climbed onto a low wall. He could see twigs. He could see blue. Then came a tiny sound. Ting.
The bell in the branches
There was the bell, hanging below a nest. Its ribbon was tangled round a twig. “I found something lovely and blue,” said the robin. “I didn’t know a bell was on the end.” Pip reached for it. The whole nest wobbled. “Stop,” whispered Mabel.
One careful knot
Pip held the twig steady. Mabel climbed onto his back and loosened the ribbon, one loop at a time. The robin tucked a loose stick into the nest. At last, the bell slid free. Pip caught it in his paws. The clock began to strike four.
Everybody heard
Pip hurried to the doorway. Ting-a-ling, ting-a-ling. The baker came round the corner. The fishmonger wiped her hands. Two rabbits stopped their hopping. Mabel opened the book. “Just in time,” she said. The robin settled on the windowsill to listen.
A detective, and a cat
Pip curled up beside Mabel. He had followed the clues. He had found the bell. He had saved story time. Now his eyes were getting heavy. “Are you still listening?” Mabel asked. Pip gave a little purr. Even a detective who is also a cat needs a story.
An illustrated example of the experience we are developing. Talebrix is still in development; this book was not printed by the device.