Undead Pets 2 – Revenge of the Phantom Furball

Sam Hay's Revenge of the Phantom Furball is a funny, slightly spooky story for 6 year olds about a scaredy-cat who happens to be dead.

What happens

Joe is only just getting over his first undead visitor when a grey cat in grubby bandages pops out of a display toilet at the DIY superstore. Her name is Pickle. She needs his help, and her breath smells of rotten fish.

Within minutes she's toppled a pyramid of paint tins, smashed two chandeliers and bitten through a cable. Every light in the shop goes out and the sprinklers come on. Only Joe can see her, so guess who ends up in the manager's office?

Pickle's problem is Bonsai, a bouncy puppy with a squashed-looking face who lives at her old house. She's terrified he'll chase her sister Pebbles the way he chased her. So Joe has to teach a puppy some manners, without anyone thinking he's lost the plot.

Worth knowing before you hand it over

Pickle died when Bonsai chased her into the road and she was hit by a car. You find this out as Pickle explains her problem, and it's backstory, not something that happens during the story. It's told simply, but a child who's lost a pet (especially a cat) might find it sad.

What makes it such fun is Pickle herself. She hates loud noises, so Mum's sneezes send her flying. She coughs up green hairballs into Joe's pudding, which his sister then eats! And she insists on cuddles and a tickle behind the ears, even though she's cold, damp and VERY smelly.

Joe is easy to like too. He's grumpy about the whole thing, but he still does the right thing. His fibs to his best mate Matt get more and more tangled, which is half the fun.

If you've got a reader who likes their spooky stories more gross than scary, this is spot on.

What to read next

And if they're ready for the next visitor, Night of the Howling Hound takes Joe on a school camping trip where something is howling in the woods.