BIG CAT, SMALL CAT

“This cat is big / This cat is small / This cat is short / This cat is…” Cats of all shapes and sizes, ages, colors, heights and degrees of health are presented in rhyming couplets of opposites with the last word or phrase left out. Listeners and lap-sitters can supply the missing words, though in a couple of cases the youngest might need a little prompting: “This cat is scared / This cat is bold / This cat feels fine / This cat has a…” (said cat droops with copious snot dripping from its nose in an instantly recognizable caricature of misery). Israeli cartoonist and creator of children’s books Rubinger provides full-bleed, computer-generated landscapes in bold colors and mostly barren of all but cats displaying their necessary traits. A few don’t much resemble felines, and the “mean” cat may scare a tot or two. That said, this is a good addition to shelves of concept books. It ends with a couplet indicating that it is bed time, so sharing one on one at night may suit it best. (Picture book. 2-5)