Another book of high quality by Mini Grey.
A group of three friends live together in relative harmony in their seaside home. Each member of the group takes responsibility for different aspects of their daily life. The garden is dug by the dog but instead of planting vegetables he plants bones. The one-eyed black cat does the housework and the grey mouse cooks all the meals but they are always cheese based. This uneasy domestic bliss comes unstuck with the arrival of an uninvited guest makes them look at things differently.
The unexpected guest named A.Stranger Esq from the WINDS OF CHANGE TRADING COMPANY with a free prize but, the friends discover that free prizes can have unexpected consequences. He takes over the bed forcing them to spend an uncomfortable night on the floor and from that point on things go down hill culminating with the each friend going their separate way after a massive argument.
All is not lot and the friends re-discover their friendship when they work together to save the life of the mouse.
As usual there are subtle jokes and observations in Mini Grey’s illustrations and it is not possible to spot them all. I like the first image of the friends when look like a paint palette, the black cat on the left, the white dog on the left and the grey mouse a mixture of the two colours in the middle.
Althea Samuels, class teacher and independent consultant. 
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