Valley Cats by Gretchen Preston
My rating: 4/5 cats
this is kind of an in-between book.
it’s somewhere in-between a picture book and a chapter book. the ratio of text-to pictures is like what you would find in a chapter book, but it is oversized and beautiful like a picture book.
it’s also in-between in terms of realism/fantasy. the cats talk to each other and to other animals, and they do non-cat things like give each other high-fives in celebration, but the action all takes place on terra firma, where nature is described accurately and lovingly, and the adventures the cats get up to are perfectly realistic.
and it’s completely charming. i don’t read many books for kids-kids, but i definitely would have loved this as a little kid, so i think kids today would love it, too. when i was little, one of my favorite books was The Incredible Journey, and while the adventures in this book are on a smaller and safer scale (no one gets hit in the face with a porcupine tail and the biggest danger is accidentally getting taken to school in a backpack),
it’s the same kind of animals-in-nature experience, even though the nature here is closer to home and can be escaped for the comforts of warmth and safety. and sinks. these cats LOVE water
but it’s not all gentle and safe. there is a bear-sighting,
and there is a death. and…a zucchini monster!
it’s written very sweetly and sensitively, but it’s not saccharine, which is an important distinction. the cats have delightful personalities, and there is a lot of attention focused on describing the natural splendors of the region; the upper peninsula of michigan.
and it comes with these little trading cards of the characters
with their stats on the back. SO CUTE!!
i am someone who enjoys thoughtful details like this
i am reading the second one now, which has DIFFERENT character cards, so stay tuned for that!
maggie has claimed this one as her own
************************************************************
how lovely is this?? three books about kitties all tied with a bow!!
sometimes i love the mail!
read my book reviews on goodreads
