Happy Birthday Slinky Malinki

Slinky Malinki is blacker than black, a stalking and lurking adventurous cat. He is also turning 25 (which is pretty old in cat years) and is an absolute institution in children’s literature.

Lynley Dodd is his mummy. The author of not only Slinky Malinki, but also Hairy McLairy and his rag-tag bunch of pals, she has brightened up many a bedtime story for three decades. Her books follow the adventures of the animal friends in their homes and neighbourhoods in New Zealand, and are loved the world over. 

Slinky Malinki was modelled on her Dodd family cat, a beautiful black cat who was with them for 13 years. Lynley Dodd’s amazing talent for rhyme makes her books a joy to read – children and adults alike are soothed by good rhyme. She uses beautiful words, but says that creating good rhyme is a “bit of a double job – you need to be able to toss it off without difficulty. When I was writing them, it would take from February or March when I got the idea, right though until July or August before I was happy enough to send it off.” she says.

“I remember reading the Nickel Nackle Tree when I was young and have always adored books,” she says. “It was a good time to take up writing when my kids were toddlers – I was already immersed in children’s books.”

It goes without saying that she gets plenty of wonderful feedback about her stories, but Lynley particularly loves some anecdotes. “It’s always lovely to hear the have gone into family language,” she says. “I have also had a number of reports that children with difficulties like autism really connect with the rhythm and respond well to them,” she says.

Slinky Malinki first appeared in a Hairy McLairy story, but quickly developed into his own character. Words like 'rapscallion' aren’t often found in children’s books, but a favourite for Lynley was the use of ‘hobnobbing’ in Catflaps, where Slinky Malinki and his friends were ‘hobnobbing happily, ten in a row.’ “It seemed like the right word for the job and is one I love,” she says.

These days, she is very busy with the books and merchandise. Everyone wants more stories of course, but she says she must be very conscious about writing something unless it is really worth doing. She has also recently done a retro exhibition of artwork, and really enjoyed the opportunity to meet and talk with people.

Lynley Dodd will be taking the birthday cat on the road to Otago, Dunedin and Christchurch and expects he will receive lots of cards and feel very self-important. Let’s hope he has time for plenty of hobnobbing.