Authors: Maria Coffey.
Paperback, 32 pages
Publisher: Annick Press
Publication Date: 1999-09-01


Reviews :

    One summer day while Teelo the cat waits on the beach of his Cloud Island home, he hears a strange and sad crying noise - and it appears to be coming from a rock! Teelo investigates and is shocked when the rock moves. It isn't a rock after all, but a young seal pup with beautiful brown eyes and a gray speckled coat.

When Victor arrives home he assures Teelo that the pup's mother is only out fishing and will return soon. Yet that night, while Victor and his unique family are cozy in their house, Teelo can still hear the lonely cries of the seal pup drifting up from the beach.

The next evening the pup is still alone on the beach and Victor decides she must come to live in his house. But in a home crowded with a cat, a dog, hens, a rooster, a parrot, a snake and a man, it is hard to find a place to put a seal! They finally decide that the bathtub will make a good spot and that Lucille will make a good name. Victor spends much of his time catching fish to feed the rapidly growing seal and to keep her plaintive cries at bay. When Lucille is old enough, Victor decides it is time to return her to the sea - but she is terrified of the now unfamiliar ocean. Victor devises a clever trick to get Lucille swimming again and soon she is splashing around where she belongs.

The house seems quieter now and Teelo wonders if he will ever see his friend again. Several summers pass and then Teelo hears that same sad crying that first introduced Lucille to him. It is another seal pup! Lucille has brought her own baby to the beach that she knows is friendly.

This story is based on a real seal that Maria Coffey knew. A photograph of her, and information and speculation on the mystery of where she came from, are included at the back of the book.

Maria Coffey is the author of four adult travel adventure books. "A Cat in a Kayak" (1997) was her first book for children. Maria lives on the West Coast of Canada.

Eugenie Fernandes graduated from the School of Visual Arts in New York City. Since then, she can lay claim to over 80 books, including "Lavender Moon" and "A Cat in a Kayak." She lives in Peterborough, Ontario....

Authors: Maria Coffey.
Paperback, 32 pages
Publisher: Annick Press
Publication Date: 2005-09-03


Reviews :

   

This exceptionally well-written picture book has the most exquisite illustrations.
- Independent Publisher

When Victor takes in Teelo the cat, the feline isn't thrilled about the voyage across the harbor. After all, a cat in a kayak is like a fish out of water. But when they arrive at the little house on Cloud Island, Teelo discovers it's the perfect place for a calm-loving cat. Perfect, that is, until Teelo's spot by the stove is usurped by some chickens. Worse, his cozy cushion is eaten when Terry the terrier moves in. Even the roof isn't safe -- Victor's new parrot can .y up there with ease.

Suddenly a cat in a kayak seems a decent idea...until Victor paddles out to Thunder Rock, a voyage of walloping waves, screeching seabirds, and overexcited orcas. Upon returning home, Teelo decides the crowded little house is the perfect place for him after all.

This charming tale reminds us that things could always be worse. Set amid vibrant coastal landscapes, and crawling with friendly critters of all kinds, it's easy to see why A Cat in a Kayak has become a family favorite.

...

Authors: Maria Coffey.
Paperback, 32 pages
Publisher: Annick Press
Publication Date: 2002-03-02


Reviews :

   

A new adventure with Teelo the cat

At breakfast time on Cloud Island, Teelo is shocked to discover a rat nibbling at his food bowl. Immediately, he gives chase -- all over the house, around the other animals living with him and Victor the Vet, out the door, and up a tree. He corners the rat on a branch that stretches far out over the water. Just as Teelo is about to pounce, however, he hears a loud CCCC-RACK as the branch snaps in two.

Teelo tumbles into the sea. He flails and sputters, and then scrambles onto a log floating by. Teelo shakes the water out of his eyes only to discover that the log is drifting away from Cloud Island, taking him with it.

For a day and a half Teelo weathers life adrift on the log. He discovers new creatures in this strange world: silvery salmon, furry, bright-eyed sea otters, little puffins, and huge gray whales. He spends a terrifying night alone, tossed up and down on waves as a storm passes through.

Rescue finally comes when a wooden sailboat glides alongside Teelo. A young girl with wide brown eyes, named Lilly, and her grandfather pull Teelo onto their boat. After a few days, Teelo gets his sea legs and adjusts to life aboard the sailboat. Despite Grandpa's allergy to cats, Teelo soon becomes a part of the crew.

One day their journey brings Cloud Island into view. To get a better look at his old home, Teelo runs right up to the bow. When a big wave knocks him overboard, Teelo once more finds himself in the ocean. This time he is washed up on the shore of his old home and into the midst of his old friends. Now Lilly and Victor must decide where Teelo really belongs.

...

Authors: Maria Coffey. Debora Pearson.
Paperback, 88 pages
Publisher: Annick Press
Publication Date: 2000-09-02


Reviews :

   

An adventure by kayak through the Solomon Islands, in the South Pacific Ocean and the third book in Annick Press' award-winning Adventure Travel series.

The Solomon Islands in the South Pacific Ocean are full of sharks, malaria, giant centipedes and crocodiles, and are also the home to lush jungle, beautiful cockatoos, waist-high orchids, and tropical butterflies.

Maria Coffey and husband Dag love to kayak. Their adventure begins in Honiara, the capital city of the Solomon Islands, where Maria and Dag first encounter Pidgin English and men with mouths stained red from chewing betel nuts and lime. They snorkel incredible reefs alive with the rich blues, greens and reds of hundreds of fish, coral and clamshells -- and the odd lagoon shark! During their travels, they visit Skull Island, which houses the heads of dead chiefs; they learn to cook traditional food like taro and cassava roots; they witness the incredible, huge leatherback turtles burying their eggs in the sand and making decoy nest holes to fool the local monitor lizards. They even get lost among small, remote, uncharted islands. Yet everywhere Maria and Dag go, the locals welcome them with generosity and kindness.

Ever wonder about giant fruit bats, what a bathroom in the jungle looks like or what are the top ten uses for coconuts? Sidebars recount fascinating cultural facts and information from around the Islands. Maps are dispersed throughout the text with spectacular photography, enabling the reader to follow the kayak along its journey. An index is included for easy reference.

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