A Cat Called Mikey

Book excerpt: Cats! Love em or hate em, they have a way of insinuating themselves into your affections and into your life. Retired schoolmistress Josephine Reid hated cats. Nasty, flea-ridden, bird-murdering pests she wouldve preferred to share her home with vermin than one of those loathsome creatures. So when her grandchildren found a lost kitten in her garden and begged her to look after it for them until they had a suitable home for it, Josephine was appalled. Reluctantly, she agreed on condition that the arrangement was purely temporary. However, it took a great deal longer than anyone expected before the children were able to offer their kitten a home, during which time initial animosity gave way to tolerance and finally a tentative bond, growing stronger as time passed, formed between ex-school mistress and cat, only to be broken when the family moved to their new home with a garden. Appalled by the realisation that herself and the cat, christened Mikey by the children, were about to be separated, Josephine is forced to confront her feelings and admit she has grown fond of the creature, though she realizes she has little choice but to let him go. Mikey, however, has other ideas!