The Language of Cat

Reissue of the prizewinning first collection from an author now firmly established as a leading children's poet


The thing I can't have is the best thing
and although it is sure to annoy,
there's something in wanting
the thing I can't have
that's a feeling I almost enjoy.
First published in 2011 and now reissued by Otter-Barry Books, Rachel Rooney's first collection of poems for children brought her instantly into the front rank. Striking in their imagery, imagination and variety, they are all alike in their ability to reach and appeal to young minds.

“"A well-crafted, stimulating and un-patronising box of delights, always accessible and constantly inventive." --Carol Ann Duffy "Something rare - a poetry book for children that doesn't patronise its intended audience ." --Guardian , Poetry Books of the Year "These poems have a subtle distinctive speaking voice, lighting up shifts of thought and feeling that young readers will recognize but that clich”

"A box of delights" Carol Ann Duffy, Poet Laureate 2009-19

"Thoughtful, quirky, sensitive, amusing, edgy"  Books for Keeps

"Funny, fast-paced, lyrical and thought-provoking … the poems will grow in the reader's mind with re-reading, year by year." Centre for Literacy in Primary Education, prize citation

"This book is brilliant because anyone, at any age, can read and enjoy it. It would be perfect for a birthday or Christmas present, and anyone who got it would be very lucky!"  English 4-11 

"This is a re-issue of Rachel’s first and award-winning collection of poems and what a smasher it is, brilliantly inventive and inviting readers to look at the world and things in it, in an entirely fresh way… Altogether the book’s a testament to the power of language and its versatile nature; there’s something to please all tastes here. Quirky stylised drawings by Ellie Jenkins grace many of the pages."

Rachel Rooney is among the most admired children's poets of our time. She worked as a teacher of special needs children while bringing up her three sons and continues to take a close interest in the welfare of children with mental health problems. She is the author of A Kid In Our Class, shortlisted for the CLiPPA Children's Poetry Prize in 2019. Rachel is also the author of My Life as a Goldfish (2014). She lives in Brighton, England.


Ellie Jenkins is a freelance illustrator. She graduated from University College Falmouth in 2010 and has illustrated a wide variety of children's books, including fairy tales, folklore story adaptations, and poetry. She is also illustrator of Rachel Rooney's second collection of poems, My Life as a Goldfish. Ellie Jenkins lives and works in Bristol, England.

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