The Gilded Cat

by Catherine Dexter

Maggie's yard-sale bargain turns out to be the mummy of a kitten with gold-painted toes that must be returned to a long-lost royal tomb in order to save the soul of a lonely boy king.

Library Binding

Published January 1, 1992

Reviews

[Capn]

Twelve-year-old Maggie Jones loves to read about unexplained occurrences - poltergeists, ESP, and UFOs, but she doesn't expect to have a supernatural experience of her own. Then, at a yard sale, she buys a weird little statue that turns out to be the mummy of a kitten with gold-painted toes.
Maggie goes to a museum to learn about her mummy and meets a stranger who convinces her to return it to its rightful place: the missing tomb of a boy pharaoh called Thutmose. He teaches her some ancient spells to aid her in her quest for the tomb and she discovers, to her delight and then horror, that she has the power to make people do whatever she wants.
Maggie enlists the help of a neighborhood boy with a questionable reputation. As the spells lead them on, she soon finds that the power isn't all hers. Someone, or something, now has power over her and is using it to get at the missing tomb. Dangerous lurk everywhere, and as the suspense builds, Maggie must confront one of the mightiest beings of ancient Egypt, struggling to protect herself, her family, and the incredible secret of the Gilded Cat.

Free to read and borrow from OpenLibrary: https://openlibrary.org/works/OL29504...

[Hol]

At first I found myself enjoying the escapist pleasure of reading a first-rate young-adult novel that combines ancient Egypt and modern magic, and then I surrendered to the story in the present. My favorite part concerned two lost kids trying to navigate a desolate section of Boston that may in fact be part of the Egyptian underworld.

[Valerie Zink · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a great historical fiction/mystery/supernatural for young adults. It can be read in middle school and is an excellent addition to history of Egypt. I wish it were still in print. I read it with a small group at 6th grade level.