Not Cat’s funniest outing, but readers may get a kick out of imagining what adventures they might have with their own...
Cat is back, a busy schedule of naps interrupted by some substitute teaching when Ms. Melba gets sick. Will Cat survive?
It turns out that missing naps isn’t the worst part—attempts to escape out the window or hide under the desk show that kittens are out of Cat’s comfort zone. But the unseen narrator’s guilt trip about Ms. Melba’s past kindnesses gets the feline moving, albeit reluctantly. But what to do with all those identical-looking kittens? Music? Sure, but when the recorders prove discordant, Cat breaks out an electric guitar, which disturbs the class next door. Building time is more successful, but Cat again goes too far with art time, providing bowls of paint and demonstrating how to dip paws in and make prints on the wall. Uh-oh. Ms. Melba’s back (from the vet, evidently, as she is in an Elizabethan collar that will have pet owners chuckling). In a clean-up worthy of The Cat in the Hat, the kittens pitch in to save the day. And when asked what they learned, they use signs like Cat’s to explain. And Cat? Cat’s learned that kittens aren’t so bad after all. Cat’s droll expressions and signs are highlights, but while amusing, this entry doesn’t rise to the level of predecessors; Cat doesn’t walk that fine line between nasty and nice in the way that readers have come to expect, and the give-and-take with the narrator also isn’t as much fun.
Not Cat’s funniest outing, but readers may get a kick out of imagining what adventures they might have with their own substitute teachers. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Aug. 8, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-399-53905-3
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: May 14, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Visually sweet, though hampered by disjointed storytelling.
In this picture book from Fox News journalist Hall, a young hedgehog must find a way to protect his community when peril looms.
Hedgehog and his father both have busy days ahead. Dad’s on his way to the newspaper to report “what new news the news brings.” Hedgehog packs his backpack for an adventure, mindful of Dad’s rules: “Don’t talk to strangers” and “never ever cross the river alone.” Obeying the rules proves difficult when Hedgehog notices commotion on the other side of the river: A bear is hungrily eyeing Baby Owl, who’s fallen from her tree. With creative thinking, Hedgehog frightens off the bear and alerts Mama Owl, but the predator is still at large. So Hedgehog and Mama Owl create flyers to warn the forest residents. Though Motzo’s airy illustrations are pleasing—particularly the adorably animated Hedgehog, a tribute to Hall’s own children—the narrative feels bogged down with multiple themes as it attempts to explore the power of the written word, the importance of community, and the need to adhere to a parent’s rules. When Hedgehog apologizes for his apparent disobedience, Dad explains that Hedgehog never actually broke the rules; turns out it’s OK to cross the river in the company of an adult, and Mama Owl’s no stranger (she’s the town librarian, whom Hedgehog sees every week). The back-and-forth may leave readers confused; it also feels like a missed opportunity to discuss how to identify trustworthy adults.
Visually sweet, though hampered by disjointed storytelling. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: March 3, 2026
ISBN: 9780063357549
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Dec. 26, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2026
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