Over 100 years after it was written, a lost Beatrix Potter manuscript has been found among the archives of the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. It was discovered two years ago after publisher Jo Hanks found a reference to it in an out of print Potter biography. It’s been kept under wraps until now so it can be released in celebration of Potter’s 150th birthday this September.
Three manuscripts of the tale were found, telling the story of a black cat, or Miss Catherine St. Quintin as she refers to herself, who meets a nefarious fox called Mr Tod (from ‘The Tale of Mr Tod’) while out hunting.
Not only are we getting a new story from one of the our most beloved children’s authors, but Sir Quentin Blake, famous for illustrating Roald Dahl’s books, will be illustrating the tale.
Sir Quentin said: “It seemed almost incredible when, early in 2015, I was sent the manuscript of a story by Beatrix Potter, one which had lain unpublished for 100 years and which, with the exception of a single drawing, she had never illustrated…I have a strange feeling that it might have been waiting for me.”
‘The Tale of Kitty-in-Boots’ will be published in hardback in September by Frederick Warne & Co., an imprint of Penguin Random House.
Did you love Beatrix Potter as a child? Let us know at @maximumpopbooks!
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