Films and bags and libraries

Max has decided that he needs to lend his support to the campaign to save libraries, because the bags are very comfortable to sleep in.

Meanwhile, She keeps distracting Herself from getting on with I am Cat. Now She has a Youtube channel. But She does promise some time to put on films of us cats, sleeping, walking, sleeping, thinking, sleeping.........

Dragon hunting on a blue sky day.

As Pixie snuffles and Maurice struggles to breath I have to walk alone. But still there are three. And as I walk there are three. Me, my shadow and the puddle cat. So, over the hill and far away for She is hunting dragons again.

 

On the high hill top we stop, we rest and She takes out Her small black book. Scratch scratch and the paper and a cold wind blows so I sneak inside her fur for warmth.

 

Back home, Max was disguised as an egg. Lazy cat.

 

Eavesdropping. Elmo tells Max a secret or two.

Ssshh..... come close. I will tell you some secrets in whispered cat words. 

She has been painting cheetahs and cherries again when She should have been working on something else.

 

And, sshhhh... She is having a book launch for The Ice Bear, in Solva Woollen Mill in Middlemill, Pembrokeshire on 27th November, from 5 pm. There are cats in the mill. During the evening every book that is sold will come with a raffle ticket and at the end of the evening a winning ticket will be pulled from a hat and the winner will take home the drawing below. Sadly it is only a drawing of a bear, not of a cat, but it is quite a nice drawing despite that, in pencil, on board. And to make things fair to our friends who live a long long way away any book bought from the mill's online store will also come with a raffle ticket and the buyers details will also be put into the draw on the evening of 27th. One book, one ticket. All the books at the mill are signed and the offer applies to all the titles, not just The Ice Bear.

And, this is not a secret so we can shout it loud and proud, Tell Me a Dragon has been nominated for the CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal, and we are proud because we helped her to paint the dragons with their cat's eyes and cat's claws and elegant feline grace.

Not forgotten.

She went away and returned with a mirror, so now we can see our reflected glory. Beautiful ginger, we glow like firecats. 
This morning the ground was crisp white with a shawl that the moon had thrown down and spread across the fields. As the sun rose into the morning sky she stole away its bone white beauty and warmed the land but when evening came the cold bit again at the air.
Inside the house is warm. We melt in ginger pools across soft cushions.
The house seems a little lost still without Martha. The people sometimes stop when walking across a room and look around as if they have lost something, until they find it is only the memory of her fragile beauty that has slipped their minds for a moment.

 

Outside is windsong, cold and dark. Inside embers glow.

Not Impressed!

Max: Well, I don't see what is so special about gingercats that they get all the press! No wonder She gets jealous! There'll be no talking to them again when they see this and they'll be wanting gold plates for eating off.

Not the first time they have been in a magazine either, but last time it was before they had a blog.

Her: Well I think they look lovely and at least they did mention me, in passing. Besides, lovely Max, you are the cat that I usually paint. Don't be jealous.

Max: Yes, but did you have to put me in The Owl and the Pussycat picture in Classic Poems? That was a girl cat.

And while Kiffer was walking

Max was sleeping on the clean laundry.

Living dangerously

Tonight Max is the warmest cat.

Artist's model, fiddle player.

Max has been in many books, We Are All Born Free, How the Whale Became, Little One We Knew You'd Come and most especially Singing to the Sun, but he does not often feature on the blog for the house of gingers. He does little but pose for paintings and curl in cupboards dreaming. So he was very pleased when asked to help the publisher for Singing to the Sun to road test, or as we say, claw test, a new feature on their website. As a result Max now has his own blog.
As bloggers of experience we find the layout a bit strange, but are helping Max, and would welcome feedback, so if you have time go along for a look. To read some of the posts including the biog where She goes on a bit about herself you have to click on the bits that say "read more".
And meanwhile here is a picture of Max doing what he likes best, playing lullabies to mice, from Can You See a Little Bear.

Cat flu and sunshine and a military band

Max has cat flu. He was sneezing and hadn't eaten for a couple of days, staying cwtched away in a cupboard. A visit to the vet confirmed suspicion. He had a temperature of 103.
"It's not the killer it used to be'" said the vet, trying to be reassuring, "but it spreads like wildfire".
As we walked out of the vets the streets were lined with soldiers in uniform and a military band was passing by. Now, we know that Max is famous because of all his appearances in children's books, but this was a bit over the top. And then we heard it was to welcome home the local regiment from a tour of duty overseas. So young they all are. So young.
Now Max is sitting in the garden in the sunshine. It is warm. We have our whiskers crossed that he will be ok. And Maurice is sitting in the sunshine too, by the rose bushes, and sneezing.

Sitting on a lap

Another girl came to live here and she has a warm lap to sit in and likes cats and is French. We keep muddling ourselves up and shuffling ourselves so that she doesn't know which one is which apart from Max, who delighted her with his dark beauty.

Enough ginger

This coat, with its fur and stripes and spots, is the perfect compliment for my rich, dark tabby fur.