THE SUMMER CAT

Knotts' The Winter Cat (1972) ended with an elusive cat finally accepting a home with three children as cold weather sets in. Here, on the other side of the coin, a ""mysterious"" cat shows up at Annie and Ben's home on successive evenings, but turns out to belong to a ""summer lady"" on the other side of the woods. Ben, who has named the cat Apple Blossom, is crushed, and as summer ends he hides the cat in his basement. ""She's mine. I named her and I love her the most,"" Ben insists when Annie guesses. But the summer lady is distressed, and Ben realizes what he has to do. In this tougher story, as in The Winter Cat, Knotts' low-keyed text and soft, fine-line drawings reflect Ben's moods and give the scene, cat, and people a touching, lingering appeal.