Murray the Viking

Gr 2-4–Stower’s new series introduces young readers to a cat named Murray and his sidekick, a rabbit named Bun. Murray is the cat of a wizard named Fumblethumb, who, as his name indicates, makes a lot of mistakes in his spellcasting. Bun used to be a sugary pastry bun until Fumblethumb turned him into a sticky, roly-poly rabbit with a cherry for a tail. Bun follows Murray wherever he goes with a constant pronouncement of “Bun!” Another magic mishap turns Murray’s cat flap into a portal to other lands. The first book in the series sends Murray to the land of knights where he arrives in the throne room of Princess Rubytoes. Sir Nasty is pursuing the princess for her riches and mistakes Murray for another suitor. Sir Nasty challenges him to a joust which ends in a jelly mess thanks to the fumbling help of Bun. In the second book, Murray and Bun are whisked to the land of the Vikings where they are sent to find a missing Viking named Eggrik. The mystery takes an unexpected turn: Eggrik isn’t captured but has become intolerably stinky due to his inability to eat eggs without making a mess. Each book begins with a quick recap, allowing new readers to jump in. This heavily illustrated series is amusing and will have young readers laughing out loud at the absurdity and silliness. Some pages have a few paragraphs of text while others only have one sentence, making this an accessible text for emerging readers. Murray is a lovable furry hero, and Bun is a loyal—if unreliable—companion. Back matter in Viking includes step-by-step instructions to draw Murray, a postcard from Murray to the wizard Fumblethumb asking him to fix his cat flap, and background information about Murray’s ancestors connected to the story.