Slinky Malinki first published in 1991, is one of a well-known series of books by New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

 author Lynley Dodd

Lynley Dodd

Dame Lynley Stuart Dodd, DNZM is a prominent author of children’s books from New Zealand.She is best known for her “Hairy Maclary” series, and its follow-ups, all of which feature animals with rhyming names, and received a DNZM in 2001 for "services to children's literature and book...

. It features the adventures of the stalking and lurking adventurous cat Slinky Malinki who is a common cat during the day but becomes a thief as night falls.

The book is written for pre-school children, with rhythmic, rhyming text. It has become a best-selling bedtime story book in New Zealand.