Varjak Paw (S F Said)****

I wasn’t going to review this because it’s a children’s book.

But I’m not sure that’s any reason not to review it.

It’s still a book and I’m sure I’m not the only adult in the world who would find this book enjoyable. Not every adult will enjoy it, but not every adult will enjoy the other books I’ve reviewed. Even I didn’t enjoy a lot of them. Varjak Paw is written in quite a literary style but it’s easy to understand. I’m not sure what age group it’s aimed at but I never felt it was babyish in any way. Varjak and his friends are in many ways a lot more grown up than the adult characters I’ve written about on this blog.

Some people might choose not to read the book because it’s about cats rather than humans. But animals can make fascinating protagonists. And a cat with super powers makes a nice change from all the superhumans. I kind of kept imagining Varjak as a human in this book because the book Varjak Paw is very like Act One of the opera Varjak Paw, and they were dressed as humans. My friend Barry did a really nice review of the opera, so go and read that if you want to.

I first read this book a couple of years ago. I picked it up because I wanted something to read and I got into it really quickly. Then I went to see the Varjak Paw opera, and I loved it so much, I decided to read the book again – and also the sequel, which I didn’t know about before.

The characters are really lovely, especially Varjak. The basic plot isn’t anything new: there have been lots of stories about scared, physically weak characters who become heroes – but it’s a plotline I really like to read because I would quite like it if one day I became a hero. Everyone thought I was brave when I went on the Underground two days after the terrorist attacks (even though I never went on the Underground normally because I was scared it would make me sick), but mostly people think I’m quite pathetic. I think it all depends on how you view bravery – I do things that scare me all the time – but a character like Varjak is almost always going to be appealing.

I wasn’t sure about his friend Holly at first – she is described as spiky-looking, and the word ‘spiky’ suits her personality as well. But I warmed to her once I could see her relationship with her friend Tam. Tam isn’t very clever but she is very sweet – and it’s good to have such a loveable character who’s a bit fat and is happy to stay that way. I wish they were more human characters like that. A lot of outwardly abrasive people like Holly wouldn’t show such patience with people who are slower than them – Holly is very bright – but Holly is lovely to Tam and also their dog friend Cludge, who makes Tam look like a candidate for Mensa. Cludge is a great character too - fiercely loyal, like a lot of fictional dogs, but quite original I think.

Another thing I really like about the characters is that it’s not just a matter of Varjak the SuperCat and his three sidekicks. Varjak would really struggle without Cludge’s strength and Holly’s intelligence, and I like that because it makes Varjak less like a god, and makes his friends a really important part of the story.

It was also really interesting the way Varjak learns a little bit more about the Way as he goes through the book. The Seven Skills of the Way help cats with things like hunting and fighting, as well as helping them to know themselves and others. It would have been too much to take in all at one go – although Said does give us a tantalising glimpse at the beginning, when the Elder Paw, Varjak’s grandfather, tells Varjak the names of three of the seven skills. Slow Time, Moving Circles and Shadow Walking do sound very intriguing.

The book is fast-paced and full of action. When I heard there was going to be an opera, I knew that would work really well – the coming of age theme happens a lot in opera as well. There’s also a lot of humour – such as Varjak’s attempts to find a dog to talk to – and the character of Sally Bones is truly terrifying. Sally Bones is hardly in the book at all, but she makes a really strong impression. I could complain that her story has no real ending in Varjak Paw, but in a way her scene is a prequel to the next book, where she becomes a major character. There’s a really scary picture of her as well. Dave McKean has done some great illustrations all the way through. Occasionally they make the text difficult to read but I really like them. Adult books don’t have enough pictures. A good illustrator can add a lot to a story.