View source for Supercat vs the Pesky Pirate (Supercat, Book 3) by Jeanne Willis

{{infobox1
|title=Supercat vs the Pesky Pirate (Supercat, Book 3)
|author=Jeanne Willis
|reviewer=Rachael Spencer
|genre=Confident Readers
|rating=4
|buy=Yes
|borrow=Yes
|isbn=978-0007518678
|pages=224
|publisher=Harper Collins Children's Books
|date=January 2015
|summary=A great third book in the SuperCat series by the ever popular Jeanne Willis. Is the evil Count Backwards behind the fact all the grown ups have disappeared? It's up to James and Supercat to find out, but they might have bitten off more than they can chew this time. A brilliant book for readers just finding their feet in the world of novels; I'd definitely recommend it. 
|cover=0007518676
|aznuk=0007518676
|aznus=0007518676
}}
We all know the story, you’re a cat and you wake up one day, lick a toxic sock and end up as a crime fighting cat, right? Well SuperCat is back in this rip roaring (or should that be meowing?) adventure, SuperCat vs The Pesky Pirate. 

This is a great book for kids who have found their feet with reading and are just looking to ease themselves into longer books. I often think that this age range can be a bit of a tricky one to pitch, trying to find the level between short stories in order to learn to read and long, intricate novels. This manages it excellently, a great story with enough humour to keep kids laughing and involved.

The first thing that struck me about Supercat is how much I enjoyed the fun dialogue between Supercat and James, his owner and the only person to know of his amazing super powers.  It has a really good sense of humour, and makes the characters incredibly readable. I also love how the action kicks off quickly, thrusting you right in to the mayhem, and introducing me well to the world of Super Cat. I wasn’t confused about what was going on, or about the characters at any point even though I haven’t read the first two books in the series. I think this is really good for a younger children’s book because it means anyone can pick up any of the stories and still enjoy it, before going off to find the rest.

I think the illustrations throughout the book are a great compliment to the text, they don’t overpower the story at all, but they keep the pages feeling dynamic and fresh, and give a good visual aid to the story which might come in handy for younger readers. They particularly work well in terms of transitioning from younger books into novels, as they are all ink drawing as opposed to full colour, but still very prominent throughout the story. I am a particular fan of SuperCat’s costume, with his white pants in true super hero tradition!

Overall, I think this is a great story that will have kids going back to the start of the series to find out all about SuperCat and James and what other adventures they’ve been on. Who knew a trip to the fair could be so eventful? A brilliant story for 7-11 year olds, and one I’m sure will be popular in classrooms all over.

If you're looking for other good books for this age group, you could always give [[Demon Dentist by David Walliams]] a go.

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