A witty tale that oozes “cat”-titude.
Move over, internet cats—this feline has something to say.
Though Edgar’s humans oohed and aahed over him when he was a kitten, now they spend all their time looking at images of other cats online and in print. How to receive the adulation he so deserves? By becoming the most famous cat in the world, of course! Edgar proceeds with his plan (“a three-claw approach”). Step one: “show them how smart he [is].” Step two: “prove he’s star material.” And step three: “call on the wisdom of his ancestors” (his grandfather’s words—“If I fits, I sits”—come to mind). Edgar’s humans aren’t impressed by his ability to scratch his name on the back of the sofa or the dance number he performs on the dining room table. Despondent, he takes a nap and dreams of the fame that eludes him—but perhaps celebrity isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. McKean’s tongue-in-cheek text plays cleverly off the popularity of cats online while capturing the divalike essence of real-life felines. In Justus’ energetic illustrations, Edgar’s an appropriately flamboyant, over-the-top figure, whether busting a move while clad in leg warmers and skates or (in the dream sequence) posing on the cover of Cat Vogue in a crown and ballgown. Edgar’s human family appears to be multiracial; one adult and child are brown-skinned, while the other adult is pale-skinned.
A witty tale that oozes “cat”-titude. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: May 5, 2026
ISBN: 9781464233128
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: Dec. 26, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2026
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies.
Pigeon finds something better to drive than some old bus.
This time it’s Santa delivering the fateful titular words, and with a “Ho. Ho. Whoa!” the badgering begins: “C’mon! Where’s your holiday spirit? It would be a Christmas MIRACLE! Don’t you want to be part of a Christmas miracle…?” Pigeon is determined: “I can do Santa stuff!” Like wrapping gifts (though the accompanying illustration shows a rather untidy present), delivering them (the image of Pigeon attempting to get an oversize sack down a chimney will have little ones giggling), and eating plenty of cookies. Alas, as Willems’ legion of young fans will gleefully predict, not even Pigeon’s by-now well-honed persuasive powers (“I CAN BE JOLLY!”) will budge the sleigh’s large and stinky reindeer guardian. “BAH. Also humbug.” In the typically minimalist art, the frustrated feathered one sports a floppily expressive green and red elf hat for this seasonal addition to the series—but then discards it at the end for, uh oh, a pair of bunny ears. What could Pigeon have in mind now? “Egg delivery, anyone?”
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2023
ISBN: 9781454952770
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Union Square Kids
Review Posted Online: Sept. 12, 2023
Echoes of Runaway Bunny color this exchange between a bath-averse piglet and his patient mother. Using a strategy that would probably be a nonstarter in real life, the mother deflects her stubborn offspring’s string of bath-free occupational conceits with appeals to reason: “Pirates NEVER EVER take baths!” “Pirates don’t get seasick either. But you do.” “Yeesh. I’m an astronaut, okay?” “Well, it is hard to bathe in zero gravity. It’s hard to poop and pee in zero gravity too!” And so on, until Mom’s enticing promise of treasure in the deep sea persuades her little Treasure Hunter to take a dive. Chunky figures surrounded by lots of bright white space in Segal’s minimally detailed watercolors keep the visuals as simple as the plotline. The language isn’t quite as basic, though, and as it rendered entirely in dialogue—Mother Pig’s lines are italicized—adult readers will have to work hard at their vocal characterizations for it to make any sense. Moreover, younger audiences (any audiences, come to that) may wonder what the piggy’s watery closing “EUREKA!!!” is all about too. Not particularly persuasive, but this might coax a few young porkers to get their trotters into the tub. (Picture book. 4-6)
Pub Date: March 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-399-25425-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: Jan. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2011
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