Cat among the Pigeons

"Cat among the Pigeons" is a young adult novel by Julia Golding, published in 2006. It is a story about Pedro the slave’s fight for freedom. The main character is Cat, a girl of around 12 who is Pedro’s best friend. The setting is London in the late 1700s when slavery has just been ruled illegal in England but is still common in the British West Indies. And so trouble rises as Pedro's old slave master, Mr. Hawkins, comes to London to reclaim Pedro as one of his properties. But not without a fight as Pedro's friends, including the heroine Cat, help him secure his freedom. Though once again, Cat finds trouble following her once more as she is chased around in London by runners coming for her arrest. Disguising herself as a boy with the help of her friends, Frank and Charlie, she enters an aristocratic boarding school and learns more of the inner London that she had been living in all her life. With the appearance of others from before, such as: Billy "Boil" Shepherd, Lady Elizabeth(Lizzie),Lord Francis(Frank),Mr. Sheridan and many more. As well as the debuts of new characters, such as: The Duchess of Avon, The Millers, Charles Hengrave, Mr. Equiano and many more. The story starts with a rehearsal of Shakespeare’s play, The Tempest, at the Drury Lane theatre where Cat lives. This play helps the general public to realize what is going on with Pedro and his evil master, the notorious Mr. Hawkins, who wants to take him back to the West Indies.