The Free-Range Bookclub
Bookclubbers without boundaries in Nelson, New Zealand
Pet – Catherine Chidgey
READ FOR NZ BOOK AWARDS
Pet is a psychological thriller, about 12-year-old Justine and her fascination with her glamorous new teacher Mrs Price. She, and many of her classmates, are determined to be the teacher’s pet, clambering to help or do after-school jobs and not blinking an eye when the tasks become questionable.
She was new to town and new to St Michael’s that year, and younger than our parents and prettier than our mothers, who wore fawn slacks and plastic rain bonnets. She made us feel special just by the way she looked at us, as if we had something important to say and she couldn’t wait to hear it. Often she’d rest a hand on our shoulder like an old friend, then lean in and listen. Laugh when we wanted her to laugh. Offer kind words before we knew we needed them. Tell us how bright we were, what original thinkers.
Justine is grieving the recent loss of her mother and so attaches herself to this mother-figure. She is well crafted and it’s easy to feel sympathy for her, even when, in her effort to be accepted by her teacher and her peers, Justine gets drawn down into some insensitive behaviours.
Pet captures ‘80s social dynamics well, particularly the school environment at a time when tamariki didn’t have a voice in the adult world and power struggles were rife. This provides a perfect setting for a story of friendships, bullies, grief and fixation with beauty.
The classic New Zealand setting melds into a plot that bubbles away with intrigue to start with then throws down surprise after surprise. I read it in only a few days, unable to put it down for any length of time. – Rachel
Published 2023
Te Herenga Waka University Press
347 pages
One Comment on “Pet – Catherine Chidgey”
Leave a comment
We’re currently reading:
Books read:
How many books have we read for bookclub in the past 18 years?
Recent Comments
 | Jill Schroeder on River East, River West – Aube… |
 | thefreerangebookclub on Kim JiYoung, Born 1982 – Cho… |
| Jill on Kim JiYoung, Born 1982 – Cho… |
| Jill on Pet – Catherine Chidgey |
 | Suzy Swanson-Dobbs on 2024: Coming of Age |
The Free-Range Bookclub 
I just finished that one too: good solid writing, good description of time place, believable characters including the psychopath. Felt drawn in from the start.
LikeLike