Another beguiling farmyard drama from the author.... Martin, a kitten, catches mice with instinctive ease but is revolted by the idea of consuming them. ... [He] secretly adopts a mouse, Drusilla, as a pet.... The mice finally escape, and Martin gets a taste of what their experience has been like when he also becomes a house pet. In his turn, he escapes and returns to the farm, a wiser and more self-reliant cat. King-Smith has an unerring sense of animal nature, providing a solid basis for the charmingly logical development of his fantasies. Each of his beasts, from stolid cow to irascibly overintelligent pig, is a comic caricature of its kind as well as of human nature. ... A lively read-aloud, studded with chuckles and surprises.

Martin is a farm kitten who likes mice but not for dinner. Martin likes mice as pets. ... As Martin grows up he learns about friendship, loyalty and responsibility.... King-Smith adds another winner to his distinguished body of work. The creatures that inhabit his rural universe, intent on their day-to-day lives (but occasionally aspiring to greatness), are sharply and believably characterized; the story is fast-paced and gripping.