Land of the Last Wildcat

About this book

Like many of the best stories, this one starts with a parcel and a note. Inside the parcel is a fossil that is probably Kuri poo, Puffin decides. 

Puffin Lau is a 10-year-old girl who is obsessed by the Kuri, the legendary wild cat of Linger Island. Her Portuguese mum is a scientist and usually away on research and her Chinese dad is dead (in mysterious circumstances), so she mainly lives with Grandad Moe and her best friend Lance, who is an orphan. 

Their lives are wrapped up in the Linger Museum, which her mum founded. But then Puffin finds a living Kuri in the museum. Her mum’s boss, textbook baddie Mr Smoult, wants to experiment on the Kuri and find out how to extract its healing power. 

What can Puffin and Lance do to rescue it, and can they trust Mum to actually help them? And just what is the connection between Puffin and the Kuri anyway?  

An exciting magical mystery and adventure unfolds with twists and turns all the way. There’s real bravery here, and at its heart this book has an ecological message: a story of how people and nature can live in harmony to the benefit of all. 

It’s easy to read and funny too, despite serious themes. And right at the end we discover a bit more about that fossil in the parcel!  

About the illustrator