The Thieves Beneath the Floorboards

The funny new rhyming picture book from the world of The Café at the Edge of the Woods, winner of the Waterstones Children’s Book of the Year 2025

Join Rene and Glumfoot at the Café at the Edge of the Woods – this time with some unexpected visitors beneath the floorboards …

Join Rene and Glumfoot at the Café at the Edge of the Woods – this time with some unexpected visitors beneath the floorboards …

When Rene hears gnawing, clawing and scratching sounds from underneath the café, she just can't ignore them. Using every skill she can muster, she lays an elaborate trap – but what she finds will put all of her hopes and dreams in jeopardy …

Full of Mikey's unparalleled world-building and imaginative storytelling, rejoin Rene and Glumfoot once again for more folklore figures, culinary escapades and entirely unexpected guests.

Rhyming text for easy reading aloud – Catchy rhymes make bedtime reading a breeze

Parent- & Educator-Approved Quality – The story is aligned with EYFS guidelines to encourage imaginative play and social-emotional learning

Praise for The Café at the Edge of the Woods:

'[An] accomplished debut … the artwork is sublime … so original, so distinctive, it suddenly makes the competition look bland' The Times

'An unusual, intricate, delightfully grotesque rhyming picture book' Guardian

‘Exasperated parents of picky eaters will love this gorgeously illustrated, gothic gourmet giggle’ Daily Mail

'I really, really love this story' Jon Klassen, creator of I Want My Hat Back

'[Mikey Please] has one of the most brilliant minds I know' Daniel Kwan, director of Everything Everywhere All at Once

‘A captivating picture book debut' Bookseller