A Cat and Mouse Pact

A Cat and Mouse Pact is an Islamic picture book for children aged 4 to 9 about a cat who shows mercy to a mouse, and the promise that turns them into friends.

Matt is an orange tabby cat who lives with Mrs Krause in a neat red-brick house. He is playful, gentle and kind, except when it comes to mice. So when he finds Millie, a little grey mouse, in the kitchen, he is ready for a snack. But Millie is polite and brave. She tells him she has five hungry little ones waiting for her at home, and asks for nothing more than a leftover slice of cheese.

Matt lets her go, on one condition: they make a pact. Millie may stay in the street, but she must never sneak into the house again. Millie gives him her "word of mouse". A few days later she comes back with her children, Wiggly, Giggly, Little Millie, Bruno and Gordito, and they do not step inside. They have brought Matt a present to say thank you.

Written by Nayera Salam and illustrated by Teresa Abboud, the story is told with rhyme and repetition that young children enjoy joining in with. It shows that mercy can change an enemy into a friend, that a promise must be kept, and that kindness is often returned.

A cat who was not nice to mice

Matt was an orange tabby cat with green eyes. He lived with Mrs Krause in a neat red-brick house. Matt was playful, gentle and kind, but when it came to mice, Matt could not be nice.

One afternoon he found a little grey mouse in the house. "Yum, yum," he said. "You would make a delicious snack for a hungry cat."

The mouse was very polite. "Good afternoon, sir," she said. "I am Millie. I am looking for food, because I have five hungry little ones waiting for their mum. Can you help me, sir?"

Matt could hardly believe it. A little grey mouse was asking him, the orange tabby cat, for help? "I have a job to do," he hissed. "I must get rid of pests like you."

Millie's promise

Millie begged him to spare her life, just this once. She promised that she would not go into the pantry, the oven or the fridge. A leftover slice of cheese would be enough to feed her five tiny mouths.

Matt thought about it. "You're a sweet mummy mouse," he said at last. "I will spare your life, and I will let you leave in peace with a slice of cheese. But we must have a cat and mouse pact. Stay in the street, and never sneak into this house again, or I will eat you whole, every bit of you, tail and all."

"Thank you, sir," said Millie. "You have my word of mouse. I will stay outside, and I will never, ever sneak into Mrs Krause's house again." She told him he was a good cat, noble and kind.

"Now go," grumbled Matt, "before I change my mind."

A present for Matt

A few days later, Matt saw the little grey mouse again. He growled that he would eat her whole, ears, tail and all, if she stepped inside the house. But Millie had not come back for a snack, and she did not step inside. She had brought her little ones, Wiggly, Giggly, Little Millie, Bruno and Gordito, and they had a special gift for Matt: a whole shiny fish, fresh from the market.

Matt was delighted. He thanked every one of them and said it was a splendiferous lunch. "You sure are friendly and nice little mice," he said. "You can come over every night, and we'll have fun and play. But remember, we'll meet in the street behind the house."

"It is a pact, Mr Matt," said Millie. "I gave you my word of mouse. We will never sneak into Mrs Krause's house."

Friends in the street

And they kept their promise. Every night, Millie and her five little ones visited Matt in the street behind Mrs Krause's neat red-brick house. They ate cat and mouse treats together, played games, had friendly fights and sometimes stayed up past midnight.