The Catapults

Holly Furbeck teaches history while strangers still call her a freak. Ten years after a lab accident made cats speak and learn, fear of Genetically Altered cats has only grown. Then a cryptic notice from Dr. Audrey Meower offers something wilder than protest: travel through time to learn how humans ever lived with cats. The Catapults launches from that irresistible dare.

Kimberly Lytle and Chaz Warner build their story around a simple, urgent question: can the past teach a fearful present how to choose acceptance? Holly's anxiety, Spike's bravado, Luthor's steady humor, and Audrey's fierce focus give the Catapults real chemistry as they grow into a true team. Their journey moves through eras that reshaped how humans saw cats, from early villages to cultures of reverence and later reform, always asking what belonging costs. Through it all, the book keeps its eye on friendship, courage under pressure, and the hard work of bringing lessons home.

The novel's greatest strength is its warm, classroom-friendly voice, switching among team members so each adventure feels lived in rather than reported. The prose is clear and playful, full of vivid cat-true details and nervous honesty that keep younger readers truly engaged. Rotating narrators and short "Think About" prompts after chapters turn the journey into an interactive reading experience, inviting talk about empathy, history, and justice without slowing the fun.

Few middle-grade adventures pair time travel with a civil rights story told by talking cats, and that mix feels genuinely fresh. Ideal for curious readers ages nine to twelve, families, and classrooms hungry for discussion. A spirited, hopeful novel that earns its place on the shelf.