Summary
Ra is the Pharaoh’s Cat. He lives a pampered life poolside with all the snacks he could want. Cats are revered in Egyptian culture. So Ra is living the good life!
When a stray kitchen cat named Miu asks Ra to help her prove a young servant didn’t steal a priceless amulet, Ra is not interested. He has the pool and snacks! Why would he want to do anything but nap? Ra’s companion, Khepri the scarab (dung beetle) and Miu convince Ra to help them find the girl who is in hiding in the palace. When they find Tedimut, the servant girl pours her heart out to Miu about what happened (cats are great listeners), and Ra decides, after hearing her story, to help.
Ra and Khepri move about the palace, listening to the human occupants talk about the crime. But the animal occupants – Aar the leopard, Ini and Ibi the turtledoves, and Bebi the baboon – are helpful informants, too. But can a lazy, pampered cat and a dung beetle really solve a mystery in the palace? And if they do, how will they get the humans to understand what really happened?
Review
I loved this book! It’s marketed to the early chapter book crowd, but I feel like it’s really more of a young middle grade book. I think this will work for any elementary school kiddo who can handle the length of the book. The mystery is solid. There are a few possible suspects, and Ra and Khepri are fun detectives. I love how they figured out the solution AND were able to clue the humans in.
There are some classic detective schemes used in this one, including the clueless “detective” and the clever “assistant” who really does a lot of the mystery solving. Ra and Khepri make a great team, though. Khepri is insightful, smart and observant even if he is obsessed with dung. Ra wants to live up to his title as Pharaoh’s Cat, and he uses his access to the palace and his position to get them into all the places they need to go to solve the case. Miu is devoted to Tedimut, and she’s committed to doing what she can to save her. And she knows just how to work Ra to help make that happen.
I loved this! I hope there are many more to come. The Egyptian history pieces, including an author’s note, give this great story an added layer of awesome. Highly recommend.
Rating: ♥♥♥♥½
