- Picture Books
- Ages 3–7
- Animals
Tabby McTat
Part of Julia Donaldson & Axel SchefflerView the full series
Part of the Julia Donaldson universeOpen the collection
A warmer, more emotionally resonant Donaldson/Scheffler story about a busker's cat, separation, new family and old loyalty.
- Best for3–7
- FormatPicture
- Length32 pp
- Read aloud~6 min
The vibe
What it’s like.
Style
- Rhyming
- Repetitive
- Lyrical
- Conversational
Tone
- Warm
- Heartwarming
- Bittersweet
- Funny
- Cosy
Themes
Experience meters
What’s it about?
The story.
Tabby McTat is the busker's cat, singing happily with Fred on the city streets until an accident separates them. While Fred is taken away, Tabby is found by a friendly new family, and his life changes: he falls in love, has kittens and settles somewhere safe. But he never quite forgets Fred. The story has more emotional complexity than many Donaldson/Scheffler books, because it allows Tabby to love his old life and his new one without making either feel wrong. The rhyme is still lively and memorable, with a musical refrain, but the underlying feeling is about belonging, change and the way relationships can stretch across time. Axel Scheffler's city scenes are full of detail, and the ending offers a satisfying resolution that makes room for both family and friendship.
Fit check
Right for your child?
Where it lands by age
- 1
- 3
- 5
- 7
- 9
- 11
- 13
- Best fit · 3–7
- Read aloud · 3–7
- Independent · 5–8
Prose load
Light
Visual support
Very high
Reluctant-reader friendly
Very
Read-aloud quality
Excellent
Works well for
- Reading aloud
- Bedtime
- Reading together
- Reluctant readers
Nothing in the book is likely to concern most parents. Safe to recommend without preview.
Bedtime suitability
5 / 5 · Bedtime-friendly
Sensitive-child
4 / 5 · Good fit
Graphic intensity
1 / 5 · None
Best for
- Cats
- Music
- Heartwarming
- Family
- Rhyming read aloud
Avoid if
- Very sensitive to pet separation
- Wants high action
Particularly good for children who are…
- Making friends
- Moving house
- Separation anxiety
In the classroom
How it works in school.
Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler's modern rhyming classics — the gold standard of join-in read-alouds, ideal for prediction, sequencing and performing.
A book children love that happens to support school — never a stand-in for the texts a class is taught with. Reviewed for the classroom · June 2026.
Why it lands
Why they love it.
Why kids love it
The specific feeling is allowing yourself to love a new life without forgetting the old one. Tabby loses Fred, builds a family, has kittens, and still, years later, recognises Fred's singing across the city. A four-year-old reading it gets a quiet first taste of what loss and reunion actually feel like.
- Animal companions
- Family belonging
- Friendship and belonging
Why parents love it
Donaldson's quietly emotional one — separation, a new family, an unexpected reunion years later. Worth knowing about for a child going through any kind of loss or family change; the picture-book frame keeps the feelings safe but real. The reunion ending is one of her best.
- Bedtime appropriate
- Beautiful illustrations
- Conversation starter
- Shared humour
In the series
Julia Donaldson & Axel Scheffler.
14 books · open the series →
About the creators
About the creators.
If you liked this
Three ways out of this book.
If you liked this, try…
Lateral matches. Same shelf, different texture.
Come into this from…
Easier or preparing reads — perfect lead-ins.
Where to go next…
Escalation reads — a step up in scale, silliness, or stakes.
Buy or borrow
Pick up a copy.
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