From School Library Journal
PreSchool-Grade 2-Originally published in black and white (Dodd, Mead, 1981; o.p.), this full-color version of a counting book glows with warmth and visual humor. Beginning with one very fat feline, the narrator enumerates an ever-growing list of pets that belong to family members and friends. The simple text is filled with rhyme and rhythm: "My brother has two./Two cats,/True cats,/Wild and ballyhoo cats,/Full-of-derring-do cats." The accompanying spread shows these animals in action, one riding a unicycle and the other decked out in a pink tutu, walking across a tightrope. There is a sister with three cats dressed for a party, an uncle with four felines that live in a store, and a cousin with five "Jive cats" that play jazz instruments and dance beneath the moon. Here the progression pauses, the animals are added, and all 15 are grouped together for easy tallying. The count then continues up to 10, culminating in another illustration that incorporates all 55 felines. As a final surprise, the first fat cat has five kittens, adding up to "Too many cats." The loose, pen-and-ink and watercolor cartoons perfectly match the lighthearted tone of the text. From the title page, which shows an amusing rear-end view of three kitties with tails proudly held aloft, to the action-filled group scenes, Lewin perfectly captures the elegant postures and mischievous nature of these self-assured creatures. A fun choice for cat lovers and children who are building their math skills.
Joy Fleishhacker, formerly at School Library JournalCopyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.
PreS-Gr. 1. Cat lovers and children just learning how to count will be entranced by this colorful, energetic book. The playful illustrations are new to the previously published text, and they greatly enliven the counting game. Lewin gets cat expressions and poses exactly right, from the first, "I have ONE cat. / A fat cat. / A fun cat," which is pictured looking over its shoulder at a toy mouse, to Gram's six cats ("Fiddling-with-sticks cats. / Full-of-funny-tricks cats), playing with multicolored balls of yarn in a riotous mess, and so on. The addition is tougher than the counting. A number, sometimes with a plus sign, appears in the upper right-hand corner of each double-page spread. Children able to keep up with the addition will discover that 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 5 cats = 15 cats, and that the sum of numbers 1 through 10 is 55. But even the math whizzes will be surprised to find that fat cat number one is fat because she is expecting kittens. How many cats is that? The answer is on the very last page of this fun introduction to numbers that really puts kids to work.
Diane FooteCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
