I have to admit to loving domestic rats; we were fortunate enough to have four of them,Babe, Talon, Fifi and Sox. They each had different personalities, and were sweet, intelligent, affectionate and with excellent table manners.
The word rat comes from Anglo-Saxon ratta, which became old English rætt… and then to rat. Rats have a bit of a bad press, causing the spread of the Black Death, leaving sinking ships, being , to quote James Cagney (allegedly) “You dirty rat, you!” There are two main versions of wild raett, the black rat or rattus rattus and the brown rat rattus norvegicus. Pet rats, or fancy rats as they are known are descended from wild rats, and come in a huge variety of colours and sizes. They are so attractive, white, champagne, husky, blue, every shade you could imagine and piebald and spotted too.
I wouldn’t like wild rats in my garden or house, but as pets they have everything to recommend them!
Lois Elsden 
I suggest “The Dark Traveller” by Cindy Wright.This book is really good and it is about the Black Death!It is well written and it has illustrations that can help enhance the reader’s experience. You will be shock to know how many pseudo-cures had been created to fight the Bubonic Plague. Some are sure to make one shudder.
DO NOT MISS OUT this GOOD READ! Trust me,this book is really worth your money.
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I’ll have a look, thanks for the recommendation!
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