Lois Reads: The Killer Cat's Birthday Bash - Part 7

2 Feb 2021 · 3 min

Watch on YouTube

2:55

In this YouTube reading, Lois Letchford introduces herself and narrates Chapter 7, “Spooking the Horses,” from Anne Fine’s children’s book The Killer Cat’s Birthday Bash. The chapter recounts a lively party where the cats play several games: boomerangs, a racing contest (which Lois wins with her partner Marmalade), and a feast. After eating, they invent a mischievous game called “Spook the Horses,” in which they drop onto sleeping horses to startle them, earning points for neighs, double‑neighs, hoof‑clattering, and a bonus when all hooves lift. The fun goes on too long, waking the farmer, who arrives in boots and pajamas. The cats hide while the farmer soothes the horses, and the narrative ends with a tense moment as the farmer looks toward the loft, but she ultimately leaves without discovering the mess. The reading is delivered in an enthusiastic, conversational tone, highlighting the humor and chaos of the party while subtly hinting at the consequences of the cats’ mischief.

Chapters

Hello, I'm Lois Letchford, author of the book Reverse to Memoir and The Literacy Problem Solver, reading from Anne Fine's The Killer Cats Birthday Bash. Chapter 7, Spooking the Horses. It was a brilliant party. It absolutely rocked. First we played boomerangs, then we did races round the rafters. I chose Tiger's cousin Marmalade as my partner. for the doubles because she looked as if she'd corner well. And I was right. We won our heat by a mile, and then we waltzed away with the main race. We ate all the grub. Boy, was that tasty. Better than anything they were eating back at the Halloween party. And when we were feeling totally stuffed out and bloated, we played Spook the Horses. That was a little mean considering that it was past their bedtime, but it was a good laugh. All you have to do is wait until the poor old dears are nodding off in their stalls, and then you drop on their big fat bottoms from a great height. No claws, that would be cheating. They wake up startled and they neigh. Neigh! Neigh! 5 points for a single neigh, 10 for a double, 2 extra points for any hoof clattering. And there's a bonus of 10 if all the horses' hooves lift off the ground at the same time. Great game! The problem is we played it for much too long and woke the farmer. She wasn't in the best mood when she came stomping into the barn in her boots and pyjamas. We all laid low while she went down the line of horses in their stalls, patting and soothing. Hey, fellas, what's the problem? Are you all right, Dolly? What's all the fretting about? She glanced up at the loft. I thought she might climb the ladder and see the mess we'd left on our makeshift hay bale table. But we were lucky. She just stood Listening? Not hard enough, if you want my opinion. If she'd been doing a proper job, she would have heard those tiny footfalls across the stall. Psst! She would have turned to see what we saw— Buster and 2 of his rough little terrier mates creeping in through the stable door that she'd left open. And by the time the farmer turned to leave the barn, they were as safely hidden behind the wheelbarrow as we were up there in the loft.