**FELINE FICTION FIX** Book Reviews with Amber at The Mewton-Clawson Library #293 featuring **A Cat's Guide To Bonding with Dragons** by Chris Behrsin PLUS Friendly Fill-Ins

Hello meautiful library guests 

and 

Welcome to the Mewton-Clawson Library at BBHQ 

Thank mew for joining me in the stacks today and this week, I've been feeling a little melancholy, and whether that's because another birthday is nearly upon me, I don't know.

I'm nearly 22, for cods sake, that's like 300 years old in human years, and I've still got all my fur! MOL

Anyhoo, I hope mew'll all come to my birthday pawty next Purrsday, the 24th of October as Pandora and I are having another spook'a'licious night of fun here at BBHQ, and we'd love it if mew joined us.

 

A quick word of warning, for fluff's sake stay away from Humphrey's latest drinks offering. He's been making catnip cider, and he's called it Stong Claw Catnip Cider or S-C-C-C for short. I did partake in a wee dram of it the other evening, and I lost two days of my life! MOL

 So I'm just giving a quick heads up, just in case he offers mew a bottle of it.

Anyhoo, let's look at this week's top book pick.

Today, the P.A. is also joining in Friday Fill-ins Blog Hop with the pawesome 15 & Meowing and Four-Legged Furballs.

1. My favourite Halloween movie is _____________________.

2. People always ask me for my recipe for _______________________.

3. I go to _________ when I need help.

4. If I had to spend a night in a haunted house, I would bring _________ with me.

The P.A.'s answers are...

1. My favourite Halloween movie is Hocus Pocus. A classic of its time and still great fun.

2. People always ask me for my recipe for my Yorkshire puddings. They're legendary in the entire Mewton-Clawson district and beyond. If you like a really good Yorkshire pudding, I can make that happen! LOL 

3. I go to _________ when I need help. It would depend on the type of help I may require, as to whom I would approach, but I have a nice little cache of peeps I can rely on. But usually, it is my furbulous husband, aka Cat Dad, who is always first on my Call for Help list! LOL

4. If I had to spend a night in a haunted house, I would bring _________ with me. Well, it depends on whether it was a good haunted house or a bad haunted house, but I always find it best to be prepared with these things, so I would have a full ghost-busting kit with me just in case, oh and a fluffy blanket and matching pillow, and a torch, with a backup torch! LOL

Let's see what I've got to show mew this time!

This week's top book pick is...

Mewton-Clawson Library Copy

A Cat's Guide To Bonding with Dragons

Dragoncat Book 1

by 

Chris Behrsin

       Here's a little snippet of the book blurb:      

The unlikely duo who might just save the world

Ben must be the hungriest cat ever…

One moment, he was enjoying a breakfast of salmon trimmings in his home in South Wales. The next, he was teleported across time and space onto the cold stone floor of an evil warlock.

Locked in the warlock’s tower through day and night, Ben may have to serve him for a while. He'll hate this, especially having to hunt those infernal demon rats when the warlock doesn’t feed him well at all.

So, what did I think of Dragoncat Book One? 

Mew will think I've got dragons on the brain, but honestly, I could have done with this guide before I embarked on my disastrous dragon-riding escapades the other week. Let me tell mew, it was a tail-spinning adventure that I could have used some tips for! MOL 

In A Cat's Guide to Bonding with Dragons, mew will embark on a whimsical adventure that brings together an unlikely duo in a quest to save the world, and we know all about saving the world! MOL

The tale begins with Ben, a purrpetually hungry Bengal cat, who is unceremoniously transported to the cold, stone floor of an evil warlock's tower after enjoying a breakfast of salmon trimmings in South Wales. Locked in the tower, Ben faces the daunting task of serving the warlock and hunting infernal demon rats while struggling with the warlock's inadequate provisions.

Meanwhile, at a distant dragon academy, a bored dragon awaits a suitable bond to ride into battle against the forces of evil. As the dragon yearns for a companion with the dexterity to fulfil this role, a thrilling and heartwarming journey unfolds, promising excitement, humour, and a heartwarming tale of friendship.

The world-building is supurr fun, but what really steals the show are the characters. As the story unfolds, the plot takes shape, creating a highly readable and amusing book that will leave mew feeling connected and invested in the characters' journey. The book is filled with wit and charm, making this a delightful read for anypawdy who enjoys a good adventure with a touch of humour. A Cat's Guide to Bonding with Dragons is a captivating tale that will leave mew wholly invested in the unlikely duo's thrilling escapades.

And here's the best part, this title is available in the Kindle Unlimited catalogue, so mew can dive into this delightful adventure as part of your subscription.

A Totally Top Paw start to a nine-book series!

And mew know how much I love a long series! MOL

Ages: 8 -18 years, but anypawdy who loves a book with a cat in it!

Paperback: 214 pages

Audio: 7 hours 40 mins

My Rating Scale

Ratings of:

A Cat's Guide To Bonding with Dragons

Overall Enjoyment

Other Fun Blog Hops to Join Today

          Brian's Home   Catblogosphere    Feline Friday   Nature Friday    Flashback Friday   Friendship Friday       

I'm off to prepare for next week's review, as mew know the drill, so many books, so little time!

Don't forget if mew are looking for great books with cats, check out the Book Review page, just click the link here or at the top of the page, as that's the place to visit to get your feline fiction fix.

Until next week...

Keep calm and read more books

Amber 

Follow me at @BionicBasil® on Instacat

Don't furget to subscribe and never miss another review! 

 Graphics created with paid licence www.canva.com 

**Spooky Crafting With Cats** **RERUN ~ PART FIVE** How We Made The Trick or Treat Halloween Monster Truck aka MOG1

Welcome to

Supurr Spooky Greetings Pawesome Pals

Thanks for joining us for Part Five of our Halloween Crafting with Cats Rerun. Mew know we have so much fun making all this stuff and we hope mew enjoy seeing it!

If mew missed any of our previous CWC posts, stop by the Crafting with Cats Page and see all our previous projects, and mew don't have to be an expert in anything to make any of them.  Plus, we offer workarounds and no-sew projects for those who don't like to sew.

Previous Halloween Crafting Posts

Part One ~ Bertie the Bat, Yummy Plumpkin Tartes and the Purple Peril Kicker

Part Two ~ Spooky Haunted House + Catnip Pumpkin Toys

Part Three ~ Pumpkin Pouffe and Some Other Really Fun Pumpkin-Inspired Stuff 

Part Four ~ Gordon the Ghost Spooktacular Meowoleen Snuggle Mat

*    *    *

**A quick note before we begin**

All Crafting with Cats ideas and creations are of our own design, and we share them for purrsonal/home use only.

  So purrlease do not copy for commercial/resale purrposes.

Copyright ©BionicBasil® 

*     *     *

The Trick or Treat Monster Truck aka Mog1

Isn't it epic?

What We Used:

3 x cardboard boxes

Non Toxic glue + Glue gun

Black spray paint

Black felt fabric

6 x Plastic jar lids for hub caps

Silver spray paint

Long wooden dowels to strengthen the pick-up bed

Extras: 

Hemp rope

Battery operated lights

Reflective stickers

Small round cardboard scratcher for steering wheel mount

Sticky back plastic

Pumpkin stickers

Long play wand with feather and bell for the aerial

Small cardboard reel for steering wheel

Silver paper for side windows

Let's Get Started

1. & 2. We only had a small square box and a long shallow one when we started. And to be honest, we had no idea what to make, but then inspiration struck.

3. We cut halfway down on one side of the smaller box.

4. Then we cut out the windowscreen. Leaving the bottom edge attached.

5. 6. & 7. We glued the windowscreen on an angle to the side flaps and cut off the excess. Then, we folded the top edge down and glued it to the edge of the windowscreen.

 8. & 9. We used the windowscreen flap to make the nose of the truck and added a couple of pieces of leftover cardboard from the flaps of the shallow box. 

10. Next, we cut out the back of the box and opened up the cab.

11. 12. & 13. Then, we cut out the end of the shallow box and glued the flaps down, securing the cab to the truck bed.

14. At this point, we decided the top of the cab needed a light bar.

15. 16. 17. & 18.  So we created a long narrow box out of some spare cardboard we had in the craft room.

19. 20. & 21. We glued the light bar in place, and this is what our Unimog looked like with no wheels.

22. 23. & 24. We cut 12 circles from the remainder of the shallow box flaps and 6 long strips to construct the wheels.

25. 26. & 27. We gently scored the edges of the long strips and carefully cut with scissors to the scoreline, creating lots of little tabs. Then, we gently bent the strips and glued them to the circles, creating the wheels.

28. 29. & 30.  We glued the wheels to the Unimog, and this is how it looked.

31. Realising that we needed to add a bit of strength under the chassis so the truck bed didn't sag when we cats got in it, we used some long wooden dowels we had in stock and punched holes through the inner wheels and glued the dowels in place.

32. & 33. This was our finished mog pre-spray shop. Oh, we did add a jerry can, as we thought the back looked a bit flat.

34. 35. & 36. The Unimog went into the spray shop and came out black.

37. & 38. We used some old paper stock to create the number plates and glued them to some small cardboard rectangles.

39. The Unimog was ready for customisation.

40. & 41.  We used some plastic jar tops for the hubs and sprayed them silver.

43. 44. & 45. We used a large piece of black felt to line the inside of the cab floor and truck bed and glued it in place using non-toxic PVA glue.

46. 47. 48. & 49. Deciding that we needed a steering wheel, we found a small cylindrical cat scratcher in the craft room which was purrfect for our needs and just changed the colour on the sides with some sticky back plastic that we had in stock.

50. & 51. We used a small cardboard reel, leftover from some hemp rope and pulled one end off, and sprayed the remaining part silver and glued it into the existing hole in the scratcher before glueing it to the inside of the cab just below the window.

52. 53. & 54. Next, we added the number plates and silver hubs to the wheels.

55. No Unimog is complete without a tow rope, so we added that next, glueing it under the truck nose.

56. Then, we added the battery-operated headlights and sidelight reflective stickers.

57. Then, we decided it needed a grill, so we used a small rectangle of cardboard and sprayed it silver before adding a pumpkin sticker.

58. & 59. We attached the lights to the light bar and tested them - EPIC!!!!!

60. 61. & 62.  Using some silver paper, we created the side windows and then made the sills from leftover cardboard sprayed silver.

63. Finally, we added the rear light-reflective stickers, and a sticker to the jerry can, plus the long aerial toy was glued to the back of the truck bed. Mew can see Melvyn attacking in the video.

And there mew have it, only 63 supurr simple steps to making your very own Unimog! MOL 

But seriously, it didn't take long at all to make and considering we pretty much made it up as we went along, it didn't turn out too shabby. We also added one of our lovely snuggle mats in the truck bed to make it extra cosy.

And for those who'd just like to watch us make it, here are the videos.

Direct link to watch on YouTube

Direct link to watch on YouTube

Are mew ready for the video of The B Team with Mog 1? Of course mew are! 

Direct link to watch on YouTube

LET'S GO TRICK OR TREATING!

What do mew think of our Unimog for cats?

We think MOG 1 is probably the best thing we have ever made.

See our previous Halloween Crafting videos below:

Check out the epically epic Spooky House and Catnip Pumpkins 

Click here

and

The Halloween Crafting Special from 2019

Featuring oodles of fun projects including this giant furry pumpkin.

Click Here

Gordon the Ghost Spooktacular Meowoleen Snuggle Mat 2021

Click Here

Or check out our YouTube Channel for all our fun DIY Cat Stuff videos.

And that furiends furry sadly brings us to the end of our fifth Halloween Crafting with Cats Rerun; we do hope mew liked it, and feel free to post your pawesome crafty pics or ideas on our Facebook page at:

Bionic Basil & The 'B' Team @Facebook 

Amber will be here tomorrow with another fun book review. Until then...

Spooky purrs

MUWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAA

Wing Commander Basil & The B Team 

Don't furget to subscribe and never miss another post!

Disclaimer:

We at BionicBasil HQ are not responsible or liable fur any injuries to person/s and/or cat/s, crafting addictions, glue on cats, paper cuts, misplaced pins and needles, cats stealing your supplies, broken scissors, cat fur stuck on your projects, or your project not turning out as planned.  By using this information you hereby agree to indemnify and hold harmless BionicBasil and staff from and against any and all claims for personal injuries or damages of any kind arising from the use of any Crafting With Cats posts we may share.

Graphics created with paid licence www.canva.com 

Music used under license from SoundStripe. Track: Wax on Wicks Artist: Empyreal Glow -  each video has its own content-id code.