Five reasons I'm compelled to post about Mog

Sticking to your guns is for people who wear holsters and blow bubbles. I, however, am expert at changing my mind. When I said I wasn’t going to blog about my sparkly-eyed, raisin-scoffing imp’s taste in literature, I just didn’t yet know there was good reason to do it.

I’m compelled to post about Mog the Forgetful Cat. We’re away from home right now and the raisin-scoffer is privy to a vast collection of kids’ books spanning yesteryear to today. For the last fortnight, no book has been more requested at bedtime than her favourite Aunty’s well-worn copy of Mog. So here are five of the best things about Judith Kerr’s masterpiece.

1) Like a sensible Aucklander in spring, Mog is layered. There’s something for both parent and child and it’s sprinkled with Judith Kerr’s gorgeous, subtle humour. A favourite passage goes: “the garden was dark. The house was dark too. Mog sat in the dark and thought dark thoughts.”

2) Not just charm but good looks. Judith Kerr’s illustrations are expressive, detailed and really get the catness of cats… there’s something new to point out every night. Reminiscing with my mum about the book, she told me that someone sent me a copy written in Gaelic. So for a long time she just talked me through the illustrations and made it up.  And bonus for hipsters: some of the Thomas’ rooms feel like they’ve been curated for a mid century modern exhibition.

3) It hosts a gentle, gentle plot. No baddies, or goodies. It’s about the trials of being a cat in a human world and I think (next to thinking dark thoughts in the dark) the most wonderful thing about it is the illustration in which even the burglar is given a cup of tea in the kitchen.

4) It’s comforting to know that some things will always be good. I was a Mog fan and it’s been nice to get reacquainted and to have the raisin-scoffer back me up on this. And with a litter of Mog descendants (Mog and the Baby, Mog's Christmas and even Goodbye Mog) it means that someone's birthday just got easier.

5) Cats are polarising, but Mog is not. Though I write this as a cat lover… well anyway, here’s what I think. If you love cats Mog resonates because her cat foibles are so endearing and recognisable. I imagine if you were someone who was less fond of cats, Mog’s foibles would be so recognisable and irritating and that it might be soothing to feel like Judith Kerr understands your pain (see Mr Thomas above).