The Cat Came Back [Hardcover]

Fred Penner (Author), Renee Reichert (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 4 and up

This handsome book has a built-in audience -- the thousands of children who have delighted in Fred Penner's music and signature song, The Cat Came Back. The story is simple: old Mr. Johnson is driven round the bend by a pesky cat who just won't let him nap in peace. The familiar words and infectious rhythm invite children to join in and read along. Renee Reichert's luscious pastels complete the entertainment, making a standout picture book and a perfect gift.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 2–A very large orange cat with mischievous green eyes and a frustrated, bespectacled farmer decked out in overalls are at odds in this rollicking picture-book version of Penner's song. It's the art that's the real star here as it follows the man's efforts to rid himself of the persistent animal. His attempts begin modestly with building the cat his very own house, and get more and more outlandish, from dropping him into the sea to shooting him off into space, none of which work, of course: …the cat came back the very next day….He just couldn't stay away. Full-bleed spreads capture the antics of the annoyed farmer and determined feline as well as the animal onlookers. The book has all of the elements of a funny children's song/story, with extreme measures matched up with hilarious results. It's loads of fun.–Jane Marino, Bronxville Public Library, NY
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

PreS-Gr. 2. Like many songs transferred to picture-book form, this nineteenth-century folk ballad loses much in the translation. Divorced from cues of tune and tempo, the flat-footed verses about a battle of wills between an old man and a persistent stray cat are likely to leave newcomers cold. But young listeners and adult readers who arrive armed with mental soundtracks will embrace this original adaptation by Canadian singer-songwriter Penner. Though there's much that is different from Penner's recordings of the tune, this retains traces of the traditional song's irreverent, macabre humor, with cat-shooing attempts escalating from calling the humane society to exporting the irrepressible feline to Mars. Reichert's appealing oils fill in for the absent music to help soften the potentially cruel words. When Mr. Johnson "[gives] the cat the boot," for instance, the animal is not drop-kicked but gently deposited upon the front walk. In fact, the deeply colored paintings, aswirl with lithe feline energy, are likely to draw children unacquainted with the song, so it's a shame that there is no musical notation or source information appended. Jennifer Mattson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Roaring Brook Press; First Edition edition (August 11, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1596430303
• ISBN-13: 978-1596430303
• Product Dimensions: 11.1 x 8.8 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,488,828 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Truly disturbing book--poor use of adoption language, drowning animals, January 10, 2008

By 

Book Lovin' Mom - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Cat Came Back (Hardcover)

Fred Penner's book is beautifully illustrated, and there's a strong dose of humor in the book. I'm a huge fan of quirky books, and I usually don't take things too seriously. With that in mind, I have to say this book is AWFUL. I'm putting it away because it has no place in our home. My issues with it:

1. Mr. Johnson, in one of his attempts to get rid of his cat, puts it in a trunk and sinks it in the ocean. He's seen above the waves cheering as the trunk sinks to the bottom. It's pretty gruesome. I know the verses of the original rhyme are also gruesome, but that hasn't stopped other illustrators/authors from finding clever funny ways to interpret the lyrics--the way Mr. Penner and Renee Reichert choose to tell the story is really sick. Who celebrates drowning a cat??

2. In one of the scenes, as Mr. Johnson is trying to get rid of the cat he hates so much, he's seen dancing happily while an "adopt a friend" van drives away with the cat in a cage. The use of the word "adopt" for everything from roadside garbage cleanup to pets is controversial, I know, but if I were a young adopted child I wouldn't want to see this portrayal of the word "adopt"--even if it is for a pet. It's too easy to connect a celebrating Mr. Johnson with the scary thought of a celebrating birth/adoptive parent who is sending their child away for adoption. It's very frightening for a child to see "adopt" used in an "I'm going to get rid of you" or "I'm going to return you" sense.

In the dedication it says "Nothing is more important than the unity and strength of the Family." Lovely words, but there's no way I'd ever place this book in the collection of an adoptive family, or a family who teaches their kids to be compassionate toward animals.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Cat Came Back, March 29, 2007

By 

B. Johnson (SD) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Cat Came Back (Hardcover)

A short but sweet and snappy tale, with great graphics, that will lead to many happy lisenting hours of story time for any child!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Illustrations are Wonderful, September 16, 2005

By 

Elizabeth Donroe (new york) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Cat Came Back (Hardcover)

Loved the book and thought the illustrations brought the story to life!

-Liz Donroe-