Slinky Malinki Catflaps Paperback by Lynley Dodd

Hairy Maclary #11

by Lynley Dodd

Slinky Malinki wakes from a nap and steps through the catflap. Calling his feline friends to join him, ""they sat in the moonlight's silvery glow, hobnobbing happily, ten in a row."" Until the menacing Scarface Claw makes an unexpected appearance.What happens when cats stroll out the cat door at night?Collect all the Slinky Malinki books!

Genres: Picture Books, Cats, Childrens, Animals, Fiction

32 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

About the author

Dame Lynley Dodd is an internationally celebrated writer for children whose titles are highly regarded and much loved by her readers in New Zealand and around the world. Her stories are known for their lively sound qualities, curious animal characters, and the memorable illustrations that accompany the text. Lynley has received numerous awards, both for her writing and illustration, and in 2002 she was made a Distinguished Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit for her services to children’s literature.

Lynley was a founding member of Bookrapt in 1983.

Reviews

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful illustrations. Reminds me a bit of Esther Averill’s cats, favorites in our household.

[Katherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another instalment of Slinky Malinki, beloved house cat by day, mischief-maker-in-chief at night. This time Slinky meets up with the other cats in the neighbourhood and the beautiful illustrations of cats lined up in the moonlight provide an excellent opportunity to practice counting skills. But Slinky isn't the biggest villain in the village, enter Scarface Claw. Delightful and amusing with beautifully observed pictures.

[Jenn "JR" · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is awesome - Slinky Malinki basically lives with 5 families and has the run of all their homes through little cat doors and windows. He's a much loved community member - good art and fun prose to read.

[Laurie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is also a wonderful book about Slinky Maliki. The way it reads reminds me of the poem The Night Before Christmas.

[Sophie Freeman · Rating 4 out of 5]

So much fun, lovely to read purely for pleasure.

The rhyming pattern also offers support for the development of children’s reading aloud.

[Allison · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'd only read one Slinky Malinki book, the original, before I discovered my library system had others. My mom had brought the original home from England for my children when they were little. Since then, I've been surprised that the series has never really caught on in America. There are plenty of us cat lovers here after all.

Regardless, if you're looking for children's books with cats as the main characters, Slinky Malinki is a fun series to explore. The illustrations are fun and colorful and the story is told in a poetic meter that isn't "dumbed down" for young readers. It has plenty of descriptive language they may not have heard before and that can hopefully help expand and develop their vocabulary.

BUT
out of the hedge
by the rickety seat,
disturbing the birds
in their feathery sleep,
something was sneaking
on pussyfoot paw--
the cranky
and crotchety
SCARFACE CLAW. (Slinky Malinki, Cat Flaps, p.19)

Seeing that page's text alone, I realize it sounds like a scary story, but the entire story isn't that intense. While the story itself necessarily realistic in it's portrayal of cat relations, it is true to what children may imagine their indoor-outdoor cats are up to at night. And, it ends in a typically Slinky Malinki fashion with the neighborhood cats following Slinky Malinki home, through his cat flap, to curl up on the rug in his living room in front of the fireplace.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the rhyming language, chuckled as each cat was named, and adored the illustrations!

[Lara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sort of a counting book, and a bit of an introduction to all of Slinky Malinki's feline friends (the same sort of way the first Hairy Maclary book introduced all the other dogs in the neighborhood). I liked the glimpse at the end - what will happen now! A good question to ask the kids. Would be a good fit for a storytime on cats.

Dodd is a NZ author who was recommended to us by one of our British patrons. So, these books might be a little harder to find with an average US vendor. Worth it, though. Her books have sweet illustrations and great rhyming schemes - repetitive enough for the kids to catch on, but not so sing-songy that the reader (group or one-on-one) would go nuts.

[Cassandra Doon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book: Slinky Malinki Catflaps
Author: Lynley Dodd
Genre: Picture books, Children’s Books
Recommend: Yes
Amount of Pages 32
My feelings:

I really enjoy children books.
And read them to my kids every night. But one thing I don't do it review them.
Why I don't know, but I decided it was time to start.

There isn't a book by Lynley Dodd I dislike. I mean seriously they are so funny! The original book’s are a classic that every person on the planet knows! Always recommending this author for children's books.

[Anthony · Rating 3 out of 5]

Slinky Malinki and nine of his pals meet to do some hobnobbing under the moonlight. Everything is going well until cranky and crotchety Scarface Claw shows up, and ruins the fun, and it's back through the catflaps to sit by the fireplace.

[Helen Sowa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve just read this book to my 8 year old son and absolutely loved it!
But we have a question….. at the end when slinky is on the raggedy mat with his 9 friends we can seeScarface Claw behind the chair on the left and we are keen to know what happens next!! 😂

[Hannah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is probably my favourite Lynley Dodd book!

All of the cats from Hairy Maclary books (as far as I know) are in this one, and MOST of them are Slinky Malinki's friends. Find out which one the other cats dislike in this thrilling nighttime story!

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Catflaps feels like the cat equivalent of Hairy Maclarey, and is a wonderful introduction to all the cats in the Lynley Dodd universe.

A great book, and definitely a hit at story time.

[Jenna Mills · Rating 3 out of 5]

I just felt sorry for Scarface Claw

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun read

[Jared McCrackin · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite book to read to read to my kids.

[Freddie D · Rating 5 out of 5]

A posse of cats terrorise the neighbourhood. Great fun!

[Iona Hemmings · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good children's book with rhyming and rythem throughout! Nice and easy read! Would be good for younger years.

[Kristal · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Nice rhyme- and the animal noises could be fun for the kids

[Robin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Slinky & pals gather for some caterwauling then settle in for a cozy night.

[Nadina · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was cute and simple, loved the rhyming and artwork. Just generally cute book and I know at some point I'll need to buy the whole series.

[Kat · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm irrationally annoyed by that crumbling wall which is crumbling very oddly.

[Tweedledum · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love all Lynley Dodd’s books and enjoy introducing them to reluctant readers.

[Nicola · Rating 4 out of 5]

Miss 2 loves it. She talks to me about which cats are cuddling each other in the pictures. She adores making the Fsss-pit-a-pit sounds. We talk each time about the ending and she tells me if Scarface is coming in to make friends or fight.

[Lynn Davidson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Slinky Malinki slipped through his cat flap in the door and went exploring the neighbourhood. Told in fun rhyme and illustrations, this story shows the night life of cats, and, upon making a ruckus, how Slinky Malinki enjoyed his friends in comfort.

[Bustagroovy · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Poppadum Kittens!

[Jack Kirby and the X-man · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lynley Dodd certainly loves her dogs. The Hairy Maclary series shows such affection to dogs - and highlights the infinite variations in the different breeds of dog - from Hercules Morse through to Schnitzel von Krumm. She doesn't seem to have the same affection for cats - recall the antagonist from the original book was a cat - Scarface Claw.

This book continues this relationship. I haven't read the original Slinky Malinki - so I may be missing something - but it appears Slinky Malinki has 10 cat friends who don't have individual personalities. Even Slinky Malinki isn't a truely lovable character - more a mischievous rogue.

The fantastic poetry that Lynley does so well is there - but the characterisation and amusing anecdotes aren't.

[Becky B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Slinki Malinki is joined outside by eight other cats in the middle of the night. They are having a nice time, until up comes a tenth cat, the nasty Scarface Claw, who sets them to yowling so all the humans get upset.

So that's why those cats were howling the other night...ok, so maybe it wasn't Slinki Malinki in the flesh, but this could be a good story for kids who are upset by cat fight sounds in the night. (No scratches or injuries are incurred in the story, just lots of yowling.) Also a good pick for those kitty lovers who are determined to exhaust the library's supply of cat stories.

[Emkoshka · Rating 3 out of 5]

My favourite of the Slinky Malinki books, for its depiction of cat nightlife, which I've heard but still always wondered about. Lovely illustrations of Slinky and his elegant cat posse make this the perfect book for cat lovers. :) And yes, my family's own cats have invited their own friends in through a window just like Slinky does with his friends through the cat flap. Free food! Free cuddles!

[Audra · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute little children's story - somewhat T.S. Eliot-esque, but pared down for very young readers. The rhythm is not as straightforward as I would have liked... my luck with rhyming books lately illustrates why the industry advice on rhyming books is not to write them, if you can at all help it. But this rhyming book is better than most, and the sweet little cat story redeems it. Lovely book.