GOT ME A CAT

A boy covets his neighbor’s cat and finds both feline and human friendship in this illustrated children’s book.

When a friendly cat appears in his yard on Halloween, Benjy, a White boy, sees it as a sign that Tricks is meant to be his, though his parents have steadfastly refused to get any pets. Benjy’s mom insists the social cat can’t be a stray (“She’s too well fed. She smells too good”). Indeed, it turns out that the feline belongs to Erika, the new neighbor, who has started staying with her grandmother during the week while she attends a Deaf school in the area. Erika, a Black girl with curly hair, uses a hearing aid, lip-reads, and is learning sign language—and she makes the sign for stealing in front of Benjy. This inauspicious introduction becomes a friendship when Mrs. Currie, Erika’s grandmother, has to pick Benjy up from school after he helps rescue Tricks, whose real name is Fluffy, from the street’s misanthropic tomcat. Erika warms to Benjy and teaches him signs. When her parents suggest that Fluffy should live with them, rather than travel back and forth each weekend with Erika, Benjy proposes a win-win solution. Fluffy will live with Erika during the week and Benjy on weekends. Erika’s participation in Deaf culture is depicted as a source of well-being. She finds friends, a community, and a positive environment at her Deaf school. Pattison’s text is accessible for newly independent readers, and the simple story is undergirded by a satisfying emotional realism. Benjy’s single-minded pursuit of a pet—and his love of Fluffy—is one-note but deeply relatable. Pet lovers will be encouraged by Benjy’s and Erika’s caring, reasonable families. McBride’s sketches in graphite are useful visual cues for coming plot points in this gentle, engaging story. Erika’s signs are illustrated with clear diagrams, and an addendum teaches readers a few more.

Neighborly communication and care are at the heart of this excellent tale for young readers.