2000-09-28 A lovely book to read aloud or read together

This book is just a classic Shirley Hughes. It is beautifully illustrated and the story tackles a difficult subject - the death of a family pet, with real sensitivty without getting morbid. The ending is obviously a happy one when the Birthday suprise goes well and Mr Mcnally gets his gift (a new kitten). My 3 year old son loves the pictures and the story about the suprise (all of us love suprises!). It is a gorgeous book which has dated well since it was written/illustrated in the 1970's.