Copy Cat by Mark Birchall

Copy Cat by Mark Birchall
Buy Copy Cat by Mark Birchall at Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
Category: For Sharing
Reviewer: Jo Heffer
Summary: Little children often want to be able to do the same things as bigger ones which can sometimes be a little annoying. That is exactly what happens in 'Copy Cat' when a small cat tries to copy everything that a big dog does! The dog soon gets extremely fed up but soon discovers that when the cat disappears, she actually misses all of his copycat antics.
Buy? Yes	Borrow? Yes
Pages: 32	Date: October 2010
Publisher: child's Play
External links: Author's website
ISBN: 978-1846433672
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Copy Cat begins with the reader being told that:

Cat was small and Dog was big;
and whatever Dog did, Cat did too.'

We soon learn that this involves very exciting activities such as dinosaur hunting, balancing on a high wire, digging for pirate treasure and deep sea diving. Although it is perfectly understandable that Cat should want to join in all the fun, Dog does start to get fed up with him always tagging along. That is why, when she decides to explore Space, she makes sure that there is only room for one on her spaceship. You can imagine her annoyance though when Cat shows up in his own spaceship and this leads to her telling him off for being such a copycat.

However, the following day, when Cat does not follow him when he hunts dragons or the next, when she does not follow him to the North Pole, Dog is puzzled and actually misses Cat being there. In fact she starts to be worried that Cat is upset, so she heads off to find him and, in doing so, discovers that Cat is in bed, covered with spots and definitely needs a friend. What she does not realise though, is that by helping her friend, she is about to become a copycat too – as she too becomes covered in spots!

'Copy Cat' is a lovely story about true friendship, and although the activities are unusual to say the least, the sentiments are ones that small children can easily relate to. It is a great book for talking about sharing, especially with older children who are often annoyed with younger brothers or sisters trying to tag along and usually spoiling their games. The part in the story where Dog starts to look after Cat is quite touching too and this again could be a good talking point with children.

The story is quite simply written and it often lets the lovely illustrations tell more of what happens. There are some exciting pictures of the pair digging for treasure or travelling in Space, and these are all great for sparking a child's imagination. There are many details in the pictures and these are definitely worth taking time over.

The text is quite simple making this an ideal book for newly confident readers to have a go reading by themselves, as well as for sharing with their parents. There is so much to talk about from the exciting adventures to the acts of kindness from both characters. I am sure that it is a story that children will enjoy and also be able to relate to.

I'd like to thank the publishers for sending a copy to the Bookbag.

Another story involving an unusual friendship is Bug and Bear by Ann Bonwill and Layn Marlow.

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You can read more book reviews or buy Copy Cat by Mark Birchall at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
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