The Cat With The Coloured Tail

by Gillian Mears, Dinalie Dabarera (Illustrator)

Mr Hooper and The Cat with the Coloured Tail travel through the countryside in their icecream van. They enjoy looking for heart shapes (their favourite game) and making people happy with their delicious moon-creams. But a dark feeling is following the cat. Something is wrong. When the ice-cream van enters the forest, Mr Hooper and the cat realise the heart of the world is in danger. Will they be able to save it? A lyrical fable about love and healing.

Genres: Childrens, Animals

77 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2015

About the author

Gillian Mears was an Australian short story writer and novelist.

Reviews

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a beautiful little children's story about kindness, selflessness and love. It is also possibly the most exquisitely illustrated picturebook that I have ever read.

Mr Hooper and his tiny, unnamed cat - a cat with a heart shaped face and a tail that changes colour - drive around in an ice cream van, dispensing tailormade moon-creams designed to cheer the souls of any sad people they meet.

"To eat a moon-cream was like licking love and happiness all at once. After a moon-cream, life would always be luckier."

In their downtime, the pair compete to identify heart shapes in nature.

"Now his cat was staring up into the sky in a way that Mr Hooper knew could mean only one thing. Sure enough, there was a large blue heart carved out of clouds in the sky."

There's a dark-ish environmental message towards the end, but nothing too frightening for the little ones, before ending on a happy note.

I borrowed this copy from the library, but I think it's special enough to deserve a permanent spot on my bookshelf.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is shortlisted for the Crichton Award for New Illustrators, and I honestly hope it wins because the illustrations are so amazingly beautiful.
It's a melancholy little tale of Mr. Hooper and his cat who travel around finding sad people and making them happy with special 'moon-creams'. The Cat with the Coloured Tail has a very special tail, which changes to the favourite colour of the sad person, and Mr. Hooper then makes a moon-cream in that colour. When they are not making people happy, the pair spend their days finding hearts in the world, such as clouds and leaves. While The Cat with the Coloured Tail usually sings joyful songs about love and friendship, he slowly starts to sing a sad song about bitterness and fear. And that is when they find the saddest heart of all.
Truly, a beautiful book.

[Abbey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review to come...

[Ree Evans · Rating 4 out of 5]

An ethereal meandering tale about kindness, gratitude and seeing the silver linings.

[Malvina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have read other (adult) books by Gillian Mears, who sadly has passed away after a long illness with multiple sclerosis. I came across this sweet children's story - more a fable about selflessness and love - with charming illustrations. Worth the read.

[Kerryn Lawson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quirky and interesting, this was a fun little book to read.

[Anna Davidson · Rating 3 out of 5]

A sweet, yet quirky, story about love, sadness and companionship. Stunning illustrations.

[Clayton HANSEN · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gillian Mears' has written a children's book as sweet and affecting as you will come across, but then, it is Gillian Mears, so no surprise really.

[I Think Very Often · Rating 5 out of 5]

this has forever been one of my favourite books ever..it’s so gorgeously illustrated and written that even if its a ‘kids book’ i will forever love it so much

[whatbooknext · Rating 4 out of 5]

Age - 6+

The Cat with the Coloured Tail is no ordinary cat. Not only does its tail change colour, it guides his friend Mr Hooper and his moon-cream van, seeking out unhappy people who just might need one of their magical moon-creams. These moon-creams are no ordinary ice-cream, spun with just the right colours that the person needs to cheer them.

When they're not selling moon-creams, or making special ones for those in need, they both love to look for heart shapes around them. One day, the cat's tail turns black, and Mr Hooper knows something is terribly wrong. Can he help return his cat to it's colourful self?

Shortlisted for many Australian Awards. A story of kindness, hope, song and love.

[Zanni Louise · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have thought about this book many times since reading it to my six-year-old. We both loved this story, and its beautiful illustrations. The story is essentially about kindness, but also sacrifice. The twist at the end completely took me by surprise, and added a whole other element to this story. In the end, it's actually a story about place.

[Fay · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't quite 'get' this book ... enjoyed the early part with Mr Hooper and his cat creating and handing out very special ice creams to cheer folk up but the last third was a bit surreal for me ... just didn't understand the symbolism. Sorry Gillian.

[Claire · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this to my little brother today. Had to hold back tears in order to finish the story for him. Beautifully and poignantly written with touching illustrations that perfectly complement and enhance the narrative.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a dreamy, melancholy story about the power of love and friendship, made all the more poignant because I read it soon after Gillian Mears' passing (taken from us way too young). The illustrations, by newly-published illustrator Dinalie Dabarera, match the tone of the text beautifully.

[Josie]

Loved the illustrations but I didn't really connect with the story.