The Cat Palace

Cecilia Heikkilä, illustrated by Cecilia Heikkilä

It was sunny. We were chilling by the old railway line. The tracks had been damaged during a big storm, so we decided that it was haunted.

‘How far can you throw your stick?’ I asked.

‘Over that wall,’ said Masse.

And that’s how it all started.

On the other side of the wall, Masse and his friend find a mysterious abandoned house. Outside, there is a lot of rubbish, but inside the dilapidated house, there are lots of nice things, like a real palace! But who actually lives here? Who has made it so nice – and what will happen to the cat palace when it is demolished?

The Cat Palace is a picture book that depicts the summer adventure season of life, where a child’s curious view of the world is contrasted with the rules of the adult world. Cecilia Heikkilä’s picture books often raise philosophical questions in a down-to-earth way, and her cats, foxes, moles, bears and badgers are loved by critics and readers around the world.