Lionboy

For years Louisa Young and her daughter Isabel  made up stories together about naughty little Charlie, the boy who could talk to cats. When Isabel was about eight, she asked her mother to write them down…  ‘I was meant to be writing a novel for adults about love and death and Rachmaninov,’ Louisa wrote, ‘but gradually Charlie took over. We made up a nom de plume for ourselves —  Zizou Corder — and our three novels about Charlie — Lionboy; Lionboy: The Chase and Lionboy: The Truth — have been published in 36 languages. They’ve taken us across Europe and around the world to Argentina, Japan, Thailand and the US. We’ve sold the film rights three times —  to Dreamworks twice, and to Warner Bros —  but won’t believe a film will happen till we’re putting on our lipstick for the Premiere. Or, at this rate, our zimmer frames.’

Charlie Ashanti can speak Cat. He takes it for granted —  but when his mum and dad go missing, the cats are the only friends he can turn to. Setting out to find his parents, Charlie stows away on an incredible circus ship bound for Paris. On board he meets six proud, beautiful lions who need his help: if he helps them escape the circus and get back to Africa, they’ll help him find his parents. But many enemies stand in their way: the cool, mean teenager Rafi, Maccomo the mysterious liontamer and, above all, whoever it is who has stolen Charlie’s parents.