Deborah Hopkinson

One small kit­ten learns about the great big world as he sets sail with his fel­low ship­mates, ani­mal and human, in this his­tor­i­cal fic­tion inter­me­di­ate read­er.

When Trim trips over a nap­ping dog, lit­tle does he know that soon he’ll set sail and begin learn­ing how to be a ship’s cat. Among his first lessons: the parts of the ship (the front is called the bow, like “bow wow”), the dynam­ics among his new col­leagues (Jack the ship’s par­rot is not so easy to befriend), and basic skills like climb­ing (up is eas­i­er than down) and swim­ming. With the assis­tance of Cap­tain Flinders, Pen­ny the ship’s dog, and Will the ship’s artist, Trim learns new skills, tests his lim­its and abil­i­ties, and finds a way to con­tribute to life onboard.

This delight­ful ear­ly read­er series is inspired by the true sto­ry of Trim, often called the most famous ship’s cat in his­to­ry. Owned by British explor­er Matthew Flinders, Trim trav­eled on the HMS Inves­ti­ga­tor on the first expe­di­tion to cir­cum­nav­i­gate Aus­tralia (1801–1803).