Just So Stories

Scholastic Australia

April 2026

ISBN: 9781760266028

ISBN-10: 1760266027RRP: $26.99

This is just an absolutely delightful (as usual) from Phil Cummings with an assistance dog who doesn’t just assist her human. Prickles is an alley cat. It’s not a great life what with weather and dangers, but it does have good moments like stretching out on windowsills and being admired by office workers on the other side of the glass.

Molly’s family has moved in across the road from the alley and every day Molly is out walking going to work, while Prickles wanders about in his usual way [look at that gorgeous illo that shows them passing each other every day but never meeting].

Gradually though, Prickles seems to be having trouble seeing things. Everything starts to look blurry and shadowy. Life is even more precarious for an alley cat. One day when he ventures out of the alley, without really being able to see properly, he is knocked down.

Frightened and alone, it is Molly who reaches out to him and her human takes up the stray, who now has found a sanctuary. Prickles is able to go out walking safely again, even without his vision, because now he follows the jingle of Molly’s bell on her collar as she leads both her human and the cat on their daily outing.

It is just the sweetest message about connection and community and caring, all wrapped up with an evocative text and sensational illustrations – GORGEOUS endpapers – bravo Jennifer Goldsmith!!! It’s a definite prickly but sensitive 5 🐈🐈🐈🐈🐈rating on this one – don’t be surprised to find it on awards nominations.