Cat and Mouse in the Night [Hardcover]

Tomek Bogacki (Author, Illustrator)

Book Description

Grade Level: P and up | Series: Cat and Mouse

Nighttime doesn't have to be scary!

When Cat and Mouse stay out late to play, they have fun until it gets dark and they hear strange noises. But then they meet a new friend, Owl. "Don't be afraid," he tells them. "It's a beautiful night." Cat and Mouse don't understand. How can it be beautiful when it's so dark and scary? So Owl invites them to reconsider night, from a vantage point at the top of his tree.

In the third of his Cat and Mouse books, Tomek Bogacki -- whose fables for the very young have been likened to those of Leo Lionni -- confronts children's fear of the dark by showing them an alternative in his soothingly beautiful nighttime pictures.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-K-In Bogacki's utopian world painted with deeply hued brushstrokes, cats and mice play together in lush meadows. One day, a young mouse and cat stay out too late and find themselves frightened by the darkness. A kind owl helps them discover the beauty of the night, which they share with their siblings on the following evening. This is Bogacki's third picture book about the unlikely relationship between cat and mouse and the intentionally odd pairing is a nice yet subtle depiction of friendship beyond nature. The book ends with a sense of discovery and amazement as all of the animals stare at the stars and the moon. The illustrations of wide-faced and wide-eyed creatures are well done. The deep colors are inviting and mysterious and will be sure to get the attention of young children. The text throughout, however, is a little flat. Not a necessary purchase, but a pleasant nighttime story.
Christy Norris Blanc-
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Ages 3^-6. Cat and Mouse stay out to play after their friends go in, and discover that once the sun goes down, the world's a scary place. Their fear becomes curiosity, then wonder, when a ghostly owl invites them up into a tree to view the moon and stars. The next night, Cat and Mouse bring everyone to see. As in their previous adventures, Cat and Mouse (1996) and Cat and Mouse in the Rain (1997), the animals are simply but expressively drawn, with fuzzy-looking, streaked surfaces that seem almost pettable, and body language that even younger viewers will have no trouble interpreting. This brief, spare story is rich in comfort--and perhaps in levels of meaning, too. John Peters

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR); 1st edition (August 20, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0374311900
• ISBN-13: 978-0374311902
• Product Dimensions: 11.4 x 10.1 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #202,212 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Illustrations and story held the attention of 5 & 6 yr. olds, November 11, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Cat and Mouse in the Night (Hardcover)

Brief but captivating story with vivid illustrations. After I read the story through once to kindergarten and first grade students, some of them asked me to read it again. The children seemed to really enjoy it.

5.0 out of 5 stars Love this!, December 31, 2011

By 

Beth A. Swan "lalalala" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Cat and Mouse in the Night (Hardcover)

Great book with beautiful illustrations! My three year old loves it and it helps with fear of the dark. Seeing beauty in the stars and moon.