Tiger’s Last Roar
Harriet Howe and Katie Cottle
Templar Books

Mae and her pet cat Tiger are inseparable. When they’re together the garden becomes a vast jungle of which the two are queens, exploring and adventuring all day until the teatime call comes. Having dined together, they bath together, draw together and tell stories together.
However, Tiger is getting older and as summer turns to autumn, Tiger is tired and wants to spend more time sleeping instead of exploring. Then one day when the teatime call comes, she fails to return. Tiger has died and Mae is heartbroken. Unable to speak she lets out an almighty roar, then turning her back on the jungle she shuts herself away.

Her empathetic Mum gives her time and loving hugs, then gently suggests that talking about Tiger might help her cope. After a while, under Mum’s gentle guidance, the two of them tell stories of Tiger, Mae draws and they share memories of the beloved animal. Mae then starts to venture outside, albeit apprehensively, anxious that nothing will be the same without her pet. However, Mae discovers that Tiger has left paw-prints everywhere in the jungle and most importantly, in Mae’s own heart

and there they’ll remain for ever.

With Katie Cottle’s richly coloured illustrations, this powerfully moving story, full of warmth and tenderness shows just how big an impact the loss of a pet can have on a child, especially an only child. After the story, there’s a helpful spread that provides a space for children to use, should they too lose a much loved pet, as well as a page for adults on ‘supporting a child through the loss of a pet’.