The Bold Kitten

By Author / Illustrator

Holly Webb, illus Sophy Williams

Genre

Animals

Age range(s)

Publisher

Little Tiger

ISBN

9781788957397

Format

Paperback / softback

Published

09-01-2025

Synopsis

Hana and her family have recently fled Syria to stay with a boy called Oscar and his family in the UK. Hana is confused and lonely when she first arrives - she doesn't speak much English, and while her host family seem kind, she misses her friends back home.

Then Oscar introduces her to the litter of cats his family are fostering, and Hana falls in love with the brave tortoiseshell kitten named Amal. The more time Hana spends with Amal, the more confident she begins to feel, until her mum reveals that the kittens are ready to be adopted, including Amal. Hana doesn't want her to go - can she find a way for them to stay together?

Celebrate the heart-warming 60th story in best-selling author Holly Webb's Animal Stories series. Perfect for fans of Zoe's Rescue Zoo, Magic Animal Friends and Michael Morpurgo!

Find out more about Animal Stories and inspiring young readers in ReadingZone's Q&A with Holly Webb

Download Extract

Reviews

Elen

The Bold Kitten, the latest book in the well loved Animal Stories series by Holly Webb, introduces young readers to a Syrian family settling into a new way of life in the UK. One of the children, Hana, is struggling to adapt until she makes friends with a tiny kitten, one of a brood owned by the host family. Then Hana learns that the kitten might be adopted by a different family.

Holly Webb's writing is warm and perceptive of the struggles families new to the UK might be experiencing, and the focus on this family, and particularly Hana's thoughts and experiences, will encourage young readers to empathise with the difficulties refugee families new to the UK might face.

This is also a story for young animal-lovers, who will totally understand how upset Hana is at the idea of losing the kitten to another family; the lovely illustrations really bring this bold young kitten - and the bond Hana has with it - to life.

Through her Animal Stories books, young readers meet a range of dogs, cats and other kinds of pets, whose stories help the main child character to learn something new about themselves. In this story, Hana and the kitten are searching for a home and the ending of their search in this story is just as positive as you will have hoped.

Children who read and enjoy this story will definitely want to hunt out more books by Holly Webb; these gentle stories are beautifully written, helping children see the world from an animal's perspective and to learn about the care they need, as well as encouraging readers to develop traits such as confidence, hope and courage through the stories. With their lovely black and white illustrations, I would highly recommend the Animal Stories series to encourage young children (ages six plus) to enjoy stories and reading for pleasure.

128 pages / Reviewed by Elen Green