THE HARBOUR CAT

Zach the harbour cat has always known exactly where he belongs.

When the Oswaldian sails out through the Grimsby lock gates one grey morning in May 1940, bound for a beach in France, Zach jumps aboard, certain of his welcome, as he always does.

What follows is the worst day of Beth Whitfield’s life. Her father brings the boat home. Her husband does not. And in the chaos of that terrible evening off Dunkirk, the cat she has loved since he was a kitten is lost too.

A year later, a stranger writes to her. He was one of the soldiers pulled from the water that night — and he has been carrying something of hers ever since.

A story about grief, survival, and one ordinary cat who refused to stop coming home.

Cover illustration by Nina Covell.