Matthew Flinders' Cat

Book excerpt: The story of a drunk, a boy and a cat. Billy O'Shannessy, once a prominent barrister, is now on the streets where he sleeps on a bench outside the State Library. Above him on the windowsill rests a bronze statue of Matthew Flinders' cat, Trim. Ryan is a ten-year-old near-street kid heading for the usual trouble. The two form an unlikely bond. Through telling Ryan the story of Flinders' circumnavigation of Australia as seen through Trim's eyes, Billy is drawn deeply into Ryan's life and into the Sydney underworld. Matthew Flinders' Cat is a modern-day story of friendship and redemption by internationally bestselling author Bryce Courtenay. ' ... there is no doubt that [Courtenay] has the power to tell a good yarn.' Sydney Morning Herald