Catfang

Star Stormers #3

by Nicholas Fisk

Built to take the four children to join their parents on Epsilon Cool, Starstormer is showing dangerous signs of wear and tear - and the vehicle of their escape is now their prison. The Starstormers have been forced to leave Epsilon Cool to evade the Octopus Emperor's intention of employing them in his workforce, and the failings of their homemade spaceship contribute to the strained atmosphere on board. As tensions rise, distraction suddenly appears in the shape of a stowaway: a tousled, spiky, wet, filthy kitten. Cleaned up (and given a name), Fang, he entertains the children with his antics. But not for long! Starstormer is once again under attack - and Fang plays an amazing part in the great battle in space ...

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Childrens

Paperback

First published July 3, 2014

About the author

(1923–2016), British author of more than forty books and television scripts and a master of science fiction for children. Fisk, whose real name is David Higginbottom, grew up during the Second World War and served in the Royal Air Force. His autobiography, Pig Ignorant (1992), covers the years 1939–1941 and details his life in Soho, a bohemian section of London, where he played jazz in the evenings until he was called to enlist. After the war Fisk worked as a musician, journalist, and publisher. He started writing in the 1960s, and his popularity was at its height in the 1970s and 1980s. His most impressive work, A Rag, a Bone, and a Hank of Hair (1982), is a thrilling futuristic novel set at the end of the 22ndcentury. The government is cloning new people and has manufactured a 1940s wartime family whose members are unaware that nothing they know is real. This moving story is a dark representation of the threat posed by technological advancement but is optimistic in its message about the triumph of the human spirit. Fisk's most enduring books include Grinny (1973), which features a technologized extraterrestrial threat in the form of a great- aunt who glows at night, and Trillions (1971), an eerie story about mysterious hard shiny objects that contain an alien intelligence. Monster Maker (1979) was made into a film.

Reviews

[Raj · Rating 2 out of 5]

I vaguely remember these books from when I was young and picked them up cheap from a charity shop or something. Basic story is as follows: four children, stuck on Earth instead of with their parents who are pioneers on a new world, find a meteorite, hollow it out, stick a drive unit into it and blast off after their parents, having Adventures on the way, mainly concerned with the Octopus Emperor, who's out to get them, for some reason.

These books aren't nearly as good as some of Fisk's other work (such as Trilions or A Rag a Bone and a Hank of Hair). The main characters are rather annoying and there's no real sense of tension. I guess they may have been written for a younger audience than either of the books mentioned above. Worth reading for nostalgia but not much more (not that this is going to stop me for looking out for the last two in the series).

[Adam Windsor · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a kid I had an irrational dislike of "Catfang" because it seemed to be the only Starstormers book the library (any library - I tried a few) had in stock, and I wanted to read the others, dang it. As an adult, I discover that this was pretty unfair. While it's very light and more than a little goofy, this third entry in the series is a notch above the first two books in overall entertainment value. Still nothing approaching great literature (or even great kids' fiction) but breezy and fun. It kept me amused for one-and-half bus rides to work, at least.