A Circle of Cats by Charles De Lint & Charles Vess
A Circle of Cats
by Charles De Lint & Charles Vess
Having met both the author and the illustrator at FaerieCon years ago, it was a treat to finally get a chance to read A Circle of Cats. The story is of Lillian who lives with her aunt on a homestead. She is always running off to search for feaeries, leaving milk out for the cats in the forest, and leaving apples by the oldest tree around for the tree spirit. One day, she's out in the forest and gets bitten by a snake while napping. As she lies there, dying, a circle of cats approach and decide to save her by turning her into a kitten. When she wakes, Lillian embarks on a mission to turn back into a little girl who isn't about to die.
This is a sweet folktale full of magic, adventure, and fascinating new characters. The words and art merge together wonderfully to tell a delightful, original story. I started reading the longer version of Lilian's story in The Cats of Tanglewood Forest, so I quickly put that book on pause while reading this first story that they wrote with her. It was neat to see how the story started.