A cat with legs as long as a horse's: what a great monster! Terrifying. That's an image that will stay with me forever. Yes, this book is very didactic. Stern, Ursula K. Le Guin calls it in her (priceless) introduction. Uncool opinion, I know, but the modern reaction against didacticism in children's literature hasn't been a good thing. This book is also delightfully violent. I wish I'd read it as a child. Oh, well; I love it now at age 45.