The Case of the Missing Cat

Hank the Cowdog #15

by John R. Erickson, Gerald L. Holmes (Illustrator)

Hank makes a foolish bet with his archenemy, Pete the Barncat, that he can catch the Lumberpile Bunny. He loses the wager, his job, his pride, and even his gunny sack bed under the gas tanks. Hank begins to plot revenge. He must dispose of the cat. That sounds simple. But without Pete, Hank discovers scrap time has lost all its joy and meaning.

Genres: Fiction, Childrens, Animals, Adventure, Mystery, Audiobook, Comedy

114 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 1, 1990

About the author

John R. Erickson, a former cowboy and ranch manager, is gifted with a storyteller's knack for spinning a yarn. Through the eyes of Hank the Cowdog, a smelly, smart-aleck Head of Ranch Security, Erickson gives readers a glimpse of daily life on a ranch in the West Texas Panhandle. This series of books and tapes is in school libraries across the country, has sold more than 7.6 million copies, is a Book-of-the-Month Club selection, and is the winner of the 1993 Audie for Outstanding Children's Series from the Audio Publisher's Association. Publishers Weekly calls Hank a "grassroots publishing phenomena," and USA Today says this is "the best family entertainment in years."

Hank the Cowdog made his debut in the pages of The Cattleman, a magazine for adults, and when Erickson started getting "Dear Hank" letters, he knew he was onto something. So in 1983, he self-published 2,000 copies of The Original Adventures of Hank the Cowdog, and they sold out in 6 weeks.

When teachers began inviting Erickson to their schools, Hank found his most eager fans. Teachers, librarians, and students alike love Hank. According to some Texas Library Association surveys, the Hank the Cowdog books are the most popular selections in many libraries' children's sections. The lively characters make excellent material for reading and writing lessons, and turn even the most reluctant readers into avid Hank-fans.

Erickson was born in Midland, Texas, but by the age of 3, he had moved with his family to Perryton, Texas, where he and his wife live today on their working cattle ranch. They have 3 grown children and 4 grandchildren. His advice to young writers is, "Write about something you know. Try to leave your readers better off than they were before."

Reviews

[Javier Trost · Rating 4 out of 5]

As someone who has grown up in the middle of nowhere and enjoyed the peace and tranquility of a slower life pace, one of the benefits is using your imagination to come up with stories to entertain yourself. Hank the Cowdog does that for me. It gives life and variety to cats and dogs, takes a simple setting, and makes it much more enjoyable. I will always recommend these books to kids. Hopefully, they'll enjoy them, have a good time, and laugh.

[John Stults · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pete out thinks Hank

Pete gets Hank to take a fool’s bet and naturally Hank looses
Though Hank manages to run into a fence post chasing a rabbit
9 year old grand daughter loved the story.

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this to my boys (5 and 7 years old at the time) and while it was a trial to get them to sit still, I LOVED this dog! Recommended to me by my mom, I didn't realize but I slipped right into a country-western twang as I started reading, and even had voices for Drover and the cat. This amazing pup is hilarious with his phrasing and how he solves problems. Love, love, love! Now if I can just get my boys to sit STILL long enough to enjoy it as much as I did!

[Parker · Rating 5 out of 5]

In 1993/1994 someone donated a "box" set of Hank the Cowdog books to the group home I lived in. I remember well that the set included 22 books and I remember flying through them one by one. I'm not sure I was in the age range of the target audience, but I loved them nonetheless. It is a fond memory in a sea of uncertainty. I can honestly say that these books got me through a rough time.

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

audio book with the 9 year old

[Jessica · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fun as an audio book. It just took a long time to get to the missing cat part of the title. Probably not the strongest story in the series but fun for driving around town.

[bear.hare · Rating 4 out of 5]

Always a good read aloud… the only complaints were that it was too short and the ending seemed a bit more abrupt than others.

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This made for a great read-aloud. The kids were all laughing!

[Sahar · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just love all Hank's books

[Kaytee · Rating 5 out of 5]

even though i KINDA KINDA do not like pete the barncat i feltbad for them.

[Vivian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Turns out this was my first plunge into Hank-the-Cowdog-land and it earned five stars (VERY RARE for me) for entertainment value alone. Whoot! Whoot! In this episode (performed superbly on audio by the author with orchestration throughout) the age-old rivalry of the dog and the cat is hilariously explored.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this volume Hank, a proud and loveable cowdog, takes on his nemesis Pete the wily cat. In the end, Hank severely disciplines Pete but then has mercy on him saving him from two coyotes. Quick read, especially suited for young kids.

[Darryl Cole · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read pretty much this entire series years ago after I descovered them in my elementary school libary. The plot, and characters are great. Plus these books are extremly funny. I loved this series then and I still love it.

[Cws]

JM4 Eri

[Zoe · Rating 5 out of 5]

I haven't read all of it yet, but I want to read the end of it but this site wont let me:(

[SSM · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one was so funny. Ugh. Pete...