An office cat that was feline helpful

This is another charming tale of how pets make a home, office or life complete. It is at one level a story about pets and the effect they have on people – with a few lawyers sorting out legal problems. 

A mysterious black cat with yellow eyes always seems to turn up at the right moment. This one finds some missing, vital deeds. (I wish I could get my cats to do that.) This book is partly about communication, how animals can pick up on things that we miss and how they can understand us. 

There are lovely illustrations drawn by the author, which capture the character of the animals who are the story’s heroes. She is Suzanne Stephenson, who had a lengthy legal career as a solicitor and then a district judge, sitting on family and civil cases in North London and latterly North Lincolnshire. Suzanne inherited an interest in rural life from her late father, a Holocaust survivor, who found work with the National Farmers’ Union when she was a small child.

She has always wanted to write and enjoyed painting and sketching. Her previous works include The World According to Patrick White, the tale of a lawyer who has a talking pig, and Mr Perkins Takes Charge, which tells what happens when a black cat marches into a solicitors’ office. 

There is a serious side, with information in the book on pet and animal charities, and assistance and emotional support animals. A treat for animal lovers of all kinds, legal and not legal. 

David Pickup is a partner at Pickup & Scott Solicitors, Aylesbury