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MRS. CRUMP’S CAT

Name: MRS. CRUMP’S CAT
Author: Linda Smith
ISBN: 0-06-028302-5

by Linda Smith & illustrated by David Roberts ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 1, 2006

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Who doesn’t know someone who adamantly vows never to let a stray cat in the house? Meet Mrs. Crump, who “opened her front door one rainy day to fetch the paper and discovered an exquisite golden cat shivering on her porch step.” The cat won’t shoo, slips inside the door and polishes itself in front of the fire. As the cat ingratiates itself paw by paw, Mrs. Crump comes up with one reason after another why not to give the cat the boot, buying cream at the grocer’s, bathing it for fleas, buying a collar, etc. Her last resort is a sign in Mr. Henry’s store window: “Found. One sneaky, finicky, troublesome, wet yellow cat with fleas.” Surprise—no one claims it and you can guess what happens next. Subtle illustrations with a British accent (seamed stocking, spectator shoes) humorously underplay the tale. Kids will see what’s coming and giggle as the cat pussyfoots its way into Mrs. Crump’s home and heart. (Picture book. 4-8)

Pub Date: May 1, 2006

ISBN: 0-06-028302-5

Page Count: 32

Publisher: HarperCollins

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2006

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS

- BOOK REVIEW
THE INSIDE TREE
by Linda Smith & illustrated by David Parkins

- BOOK REVIEW
THERE WAS AN OLD WOMAN WHO LIVED IN A BOOT
by Linda Smith & illustrated by Jane Manning

- BOOK REVIEW
MRS. BIDDLEBOX
by Linda Smith & illustrated by Marla Frazee

PETE THE CAT'S 12 GROOVY DAYS OF CHRISTMAS

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PETE THE CAT'S 12 GROOVY DAYS OF CHRISTMAS

by James Dean ; illustrated by James Dean ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 18, 2018

Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among

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Pete, the cat who couldn’t care less, celebrates Christmas with his inimitable lassitude.

If it weren’t part of the title and repeated on every other page, readers unfamiliar with Pete’s shtick might have a hard time arriving at “groovy” to describe his Christmas celebration, as the expressionless cat displays not a hint of groove in Dean’s now-trademark illustrations. Nor does Pete have a great sense of scansion: “On the first day of Christmas, / Pete gave to me… / A road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” The cat is shown at the wheel of a yellow microbus strung with garland and lights and with a star-topped tree tied to its roof. On the second day of Christmas Pete gives “me” (here depicted as a gray squirrel who gets on the bus) “2 fuzzy gloves, and a road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” On the third day, he gives “me” (now a white cat who joins Pete and the squirrel) “3 yummy cupcakes,” etc. The “me” mentioned in the lyrics changes from day to day and gift to gift, with “4 far-out surfboards” (a frog), “5 onion rings” (crocodile), and “6 skateboards rolling” (a yellow bird that shares its skateboards with the white cat, the squirrel, the frog, and the crocodile while Pete drives on). Gifts and animals pile on until the microbus finally arrives at the seaside and readers are told yet again that it’s all “GROOVY!”

Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among . (Picture book. 4-8)

Pub Date: Sept. 18, 2018

ISBN: 978-0-06-267527-9

Page Count: 48

Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins

Review Posted Online: Aug. 19, 2018

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2018

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S HOLIDAYS & CELEBRATIONS

- BOOK REVIEW
PETE THE KITTY'S FIRST DAY OF PRESCHOOL
by Kimberly Dean ; illustrated by James Dean

- BOOK REVIEW
I LOVE PETE THE KITTY
by James Dean & Kimberly Dean ; illustrated by James Dean

- BOOK REVIEW
TOOL SCHOOL
by Joan Holub ; illustrated by James Dean

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DIARY OF A SPIDER

by Doreen Cronin & illustrated by Harry Bliss ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 1, 2005

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The wriggly narrator of Diary of a Worm (2003) puts in occasional appearances, but it’s his arachnid buddy who takes center stage here, with terse, tongue-in-cheek comments on his likes (his close friend Fly, Charlotte’s Web), his dislikes (vacuums, people with big feet), nervous encounters with a huge Daddy Longlegs, his extended family—which includes a Grandpa more than willing to share hard-won wisdom (The secret to a long, happy life: “Never fall asleep in a shoe.”)—and mishaps both at spider school and on the human playground. Bliss endows his garden-dwellers with faces and the odd hat or other accessory, and creates cozy webs or burrows colorfully decorated with corks, scraps, plastic toys and other human detritus. Spider closes with the notion that we could all get along, “just like me and Fly,” if we but got to know one another. Once again, brilliantly hilarious. (Picture book. 6-8)