“A man, a dog, and a kitten come together in Bellringer’s playful novella… Luke Garrick is a builder by trade who likes to take his rescue dog Buddy to the local beach; Buddy gets his kicks chasing after seagulls. One day, there is a surprise: Buddy comes across a kitten among the dunes… A fun, if minimally dramatic, tale of human and animal bonding.”

“This heartwarming short chapter book is about the bonds that we form with the animals in our lives and that they form with one another, even after the shortest periods of time. When Luke and his rescue dog Buddy find a lost kitten at the beach, they quickly become attached to him. The only problem is that Freddie already has a family… Buddy and Luke are an endearing pair of protagonists, and readers will learn responsibility and empathy from their caring responses… Surprise at the Beach is a feel-good story for all animal-loving readers.”

“At first glance Surprise at the Beach is a charmingly straightforward story about a builder and his rescue dog Buddy, along with their unexpected find at the local beach – a lost kitten named Freddie. The narrative follows Luke as he returns Freddie to his family, the unease he feels at leaving the kitten in a chaotic household, and the absence he and Buddy feel in their lives afterwards. When the opportunity arises to adopt the kitten for himself, Luke jumps at the chance. But will Freddie still be there when he arrives? As we dig a little deeper, there is more to the story than first meets the eye… We witness the incredible and sometimes instantaneous bond that can form between animals and their human companions. We feel with Luke the connection we have to nature and animals that calms our soul and brings so much more colour into our lives. The author also subtlety weaves into the tale the weighty responsibility it is to bring an animal into your home. The family dynamics are just as important a consideration as the environment. All in all, it is a sweet tale of lost and found, as well as the bonds we share with the animals in our lives. It fittingly ends back where the whole saga began – an afternoon at the beach!”