Author of A Little Bit of Sunshine, Where Do We Go From Here?, The Imperfection of Us, Perfectly Ordinary People, From Something Old, The Road to Zoe, You Then Me Now, Things We Never Said, The Bottle of Tears, The Other Son, The Photographer's Wife, The Half-Life of Hannah, the 50 Reasons Series. And more…
For years, Wendy has put others first. A loving wife, mother and nurse, she has never taken time for herself. But now with her children flying the nest, she decides, alone, to rent a little house in a forgotten corner of the French Alps where she can try and answer the question: what next? But when she arrives, Wendy starts to regret her decision. This retreat suddenly looks so very different from the dream. As she walks the hill paths alone, thoughts of her family leave her with a pang in her chest.
With no one else to care for, Wendy is suddenly forced to confront something she’s tried her best to hide: the real reason her family is falling apart. Is she strong enough to face it alone?
Then, just when she thinks she’s hit rock bottom, she discovers that help can come from the most unlikely places: a newfound friendship giving her the strength to start again. Wendy always thought she knew how her story would end but she’s learning that this is only the beginning.
An absolutely heartbreaking and uplifting story about love, loss, unlikely friendships and finding strength you never knew you had. Perfect for fans of Mike Gayle, Amanda Prowse and Matt Haig.
Mangy Poupon was born, along with her non-identical twin Patti, in the village of Castellane in the southern Alps on the 3rd of April 2016.
The kittens, though twins, had different fathers and while Mangy was the spitting image of their cuddly, petite, short-haired mother Chippie, Patti appeared to be of entirely different stock.
Though Chippy lived with a loving family in Castellane, the household suffered regular visits from a psychopathic Pitt bull called Lucifer, a true devil, owned by a monster of a man who would one day allow his dog to take Chippy’s life.
To save the kittens from certain death, they were put up for adoption, and a neighbour, Lisette, took them in.
As soon as he heard about the kittens, Lolo began to scheme. He wanted to adopt the kittens. Of course he did.
But Nick wasn’t so keen. The couple already had two cats, Lolo’s crazy ginger cat Typhus and Nick’s ageing old-timer Pedro, and Nick feared two youngsters would wear old Pedro out.
But knowing how irresistible kittens are, Lolo tricked Nick into visiting and, of course, Nick agreed to adopt. But only one of the sisters: Patti, while Mangy would be given to a friend.
But the sisters turned out to be inseparable, sleeping entwined for twenty hours a day. And so you can guess what happened next.
The youngsters were stunningly beautiful, and both Typhus and Pedro accepted their presence easily. Yes, there was a shortage of laps for the cats to sit on, but in Nick’s chilly mountain cabin, they soon learned to squeeze in together for warmth.
Slowly the sisters’ personalities evolved, so that Patti, who had been the most alert and intelligent as a kitten would morph to a state of nervous stress, while Mangy, who’d seemed a little slow at first, became a tiny, sweet cuddle-factory.
After a couple of years, Nick and Lolo were able to buy a proper house in more southerly climes where they wouldn’t get regularly snowed in, and it was here that the cats finally settled into their routines, each choosing a favourite cardboard box for their epic all-day snoozes.
Too soon, Typhus would be taken by cancer, to be replaced with a massive orange Maine Coon called Gaspard. Gaspard was young, and wanted to play, and he wanted to play most with petite Mangy, but he was just too big to be reassuring. He was, in fact, so big that Mangy was never entirely sure he even was a cat. So she would run as fast as her tiny legs would carry her, and Gaspard, finding the game thrilling, would bound after her. They never quite managed to be friends.
But Mangy put up with it all because Mangy was in love. She loved both Lolo and Nick, but because Nick was at home all day, and because she knew he would always protect her from Gaspard’s naughty games, she took to shadowing him 24/7. If he was in the office, she’d follow him to the office and watch him write. If he was in the pool, she’d sit at the edge and watch. And in the evenings, when he laid back to watch a film, she would edge up his chest as far as possible and then flop sideways so that her head lay on his shoulder, her nose touching his cheek.
If Nick turned to look her in the eye, Mangy would retain eye-contact, her pupils dilated, and then she would reach out ever so gently and bop him gently on the nose with her paw. “I love you,” she seemed to be saying, and Nick loved her back as much as any cat he has ever known.
In February 2025 Mangy Poupon went off her food. This was most unexpected. After all, her name, “Mangy Poupon” had been constructed from Mangy (eaty) because she wanted to eat constantly and Poupon (dolly) because you could carry her around like a doll.
Nick took Mangy Poupon to the doc, where she trustingly let herself be examined, but the vet didn’t know what was wrong. Antibiotics and anti-inflammatories seemed to provide a few days of respite, but then Mangy Poupon would cease eating again and flop, seemingly exhausted, in the middle of the cold kitchen floor.
After two weeks of fruitless treatment Nick sought a second opinion, and the second vet (equipped with ultrasound) spotted the problem immediately. Mangy had a massive tumour in her bowels, and within days it would be confirmed that she had metastases on all her major organs.
Nick was devastated that there were no reasonable treatment options. It just didn’t seem possible to lose that little love-machine so young, but Mangy’s health was declining by the day.
And so, on the 6th of March 2025, after two days of intense cuddles, Nick took his Poupon, still as trusting as ever, to the vets where, staring into his eyes for reassurance, she slipped into her longest sleep. Nick cried into her fur until it was soaked with his tears, while the understanding vet stood by, his hand resting on Nick’s shoulder. Nick said that nothing he has ever done was as hard a betraying his Poupon’s trust. He just hopes that somewhere, somehow, she understands that he did it for her.
She is survived by her heartbroken family: Nick, Lolo, sister Patti and naughty Gaspard.
You died far too young, Mangy Poupon, and without you on my shoulder, Netflix nights will never be the same again – Nick xxxxxxxxxxxx
Nick Alexander 