Cat Tale [Hardcover]

Michael Hall (Author, Illustrator)

Book Description

Release date: August 28, 2012 | Age Range: 4 - 8 years

From word to word they find their way, Lillian, Tilly, and William J.

Like this:

They spot some ewes.

They use a box.

They box some fleas.

And flee a steer . . .

First they see, then they do.

The only thing missing? You!

Come join the fun.

Meow!

Michael Hall's inquisitive cats set out to spend the afternoon snacking and reading, but wind up chasing words, including homophones and homonyms, on a silly tongue twister of an adventure!

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Gr 1-3-Hall's book of wordplay featuring homophones and homonyms is deceptively simple in appearance but sophisticated in concept. Appealing graphic-style illustrations, printed in brightly colored, textured acrylics on paper cutouts, are set against a white background; geometric shapes can be found in most cutouts and in the shaded painted areas. The story follows three cats-Lillian, Tilly, and William J.-as they set off on a nonsensical word-based adventure. The rhymed text is written in short sentences printed in extra-large type. Nevertheless, in many instances the rapid change in meaning from one homophone to the next presupposes that readers will recognize the difference in each pair of words. For example, "They choose a spot./They spot some ewes./They use a box/to hide from bees./They do their best/to box some fleas." In the midst of the silliness, the cats lose direction, stumbling through even more nonsense in order to get back on track, which allows Hall to demonstrate how he creates the links from one homophone to another. This instructive tale may be more useful in a classroom setting than as a read-aloud.-Susan Scheps, formerly at Shaker Public Library, OHα(c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Review

“Eye-poppingly bright and friendly . . . a twisty, imaginative story . . . [with] ‘read it again’ magic.” (New York Times )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Age Range: 4 - 8 years
  
• Hardcover: 40 pages
• Publisher: Greenwillow Books (August 28, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061915165
• ISBN-13: 978-0061915161
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 0.4 x 11.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #352,957 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Tailing cats in kitty tales September 13, 2012

By E. R. Bird HALL OF FAMETOP 500 REVIEWER

Format:Hardcover

When we are old and gray and the stars gleam a little less brightly in the wide firmament above our heads, I have no doubt that there will STILL be children's librarians out there debating the merits (or lack thereof) of picture books designed with older child readers in mind. To bring this subject up is akin to throwing a lit match on diesel soaked tinder, but what the heck. You see, walk into any decent library and you'll find a picture book section teaming with fantastic 32-48 page titles that simply do not circulate. And why? Because of the standard belief, sometimes by children, sometimes by adults, that when you reach a certain age you "outgrow" picture books. As if they were a pair of shoes liable to give you blisters if you kept them around too long. This is, naturally, bupkis. Picture books are appropriate for all ages, really (and if you don't believe me why don't I just introduce you to a little number I like to call Woolvs in the Sitee). So the fact that a book like Michael Hall's Cat Tale exists pleases on both the 6-year-old level as well as the 10-year-old level should surprise few. Wielding homophones like weapons, Hall brings his artistic sensibilities (to say nothing of his love of controlled chaos) to the wordplay realm and the end result is that everyone's a winner for it.

Meet Lillian, Tilly and William J. Three little cats that are out for a day. In rhyming verse we watch as at first their adventures are small. "They pack some books and kitty chews. They chose a spot. They spot some ewes." As the book continues they cats become more adventuresome. "They train a duck to duck a shoe. They shoo a truly naughty gnu." Yet the words begin to get tangled and the cats are in a state.... Should they use a rock to squash a berry or use a squash to bury a rock or (after a pause) use their paws to rock a squashberry? Finally everything gets too crazy and the cats find their way out thanks to their tails/tales.

Like many people, when I think of homonyms in works of children's literature my mind instantly leaps to good old Amelia Bedelia. She continues to reign as the homonym queen to this day. After all, without them she wouldn't get confused in the slightest. Hall could have done a storyline very much like Amelia's. The cats could have just wandered about and gotten confused about the difference between boarding a plane and getting to plane a board. Ho and also hum. Instead, Hall takes a risk. He actually connects the sentences and uses his illustrations to make seemingly disparate phrases relate to one another. Now the text reads, "They flee a steer. They steer a plane. They plane a board. They board a train." All this makes sense in the book since we see the progression from place to place. Note too that just to ratchet up the challenge a little, Hall is making this book rhyme on top of everything else. That's sort of explained on the title page (Hall wastes no time) where it reads, "From word to word they find their way, Lillian, Tilly, and William J." Interesting that Hall went with "Lillian" rather than "Lily" since "Lily and Tilly and William J." has its own nice rhythm. There's no denying how satisfying it is to begin with a Lillian and end with a William, though. Even if they don't rhyme precisely.

When Hall wrote his previous book The Perfect Square there was wit on display but it seemed to be mostly of the visual variety. Cat Tale doles out the wit a little more on the verbal end of the spectrum, but there's no denying that the art is also just great. As with the aforementioned Perfect Square Hall's art consists of acrylic painted textures and paper cutouts that were combined digitally. Not that you can tell where the computer came in or how it was used. The colors in this book don't have that faux clip-art coloring so often found in slapdash computer art. Instead it looks like Hall took out his sponge and his brightest hues and created something truly lovely. From the vibrant orange of the train to the deep and satisfying blue of the steer, there's a method to Hall's madness. A beautiful sumptuous method.

There is admittedly one moment in the book where I got seriously confused, so I wonder how it'll fly with the pre-adolescent set. To be fair, that's sort of the whole point of the spread. As the cats go along the homonyms gets crazier and crazier until there's a virtual explosion of cats, steer, gnus, ducks, cars, shoes, ewes, you name it. The trouble is that I couldn't make the mental leap from that image to the next one involving the cats' tails. I know it makes sense on a practical level, but I felt like the transition was a bit too rough. Something a bit slower, a bit more staid, could have suited the storyline a little better.

I know a librarian who uses older picture books for her 2-3rd grade parent/child bookclub. It's as good a solution as any I know to get those book circulating, that's for sure. Of course, my dearest hope is that teachers discover this book as well. With the rise of interest in the Core Curriculum, folks need to remember that teaching homonyms doesn't have to be rote and dull as dishwater. It can involve naughty gnus and rocked squashberries! A visual feast and too clever by half, Hall's latest begs to be read aloud and pored over. A little book that deserves all the attention it can receive. Teachers, parents, librarians, and booksellers, take note.

Ages 6-10 Read more ›

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Cute and clever for slightly older readers November 11, 2012

By Jennifer Donovan

Format:Hardcover

When this book arrived for me to review (unbidden, but not unwelcome), my 8-year-old son thought it was inviting enough to pick it up and read it. With just a glance at the illustrations and sparse text, I thought it was a typical picture book aimed at 3 - 6 year old children, but boy, was I wrong!

Cat Tale by Michael Hall is slightly oversized with brightly colored, crisp paper cut graphics (I am trying to sound more educated about picture book art styles than I actually am, but I think that this gets the point across).

The story actually starts on the title page, so don't miss it: "From word to word/they find their way,/Lillian, Tilly, and William J."

The wordplay is fantastic:

They choose a spot.
They spot some ewes.

Not only does "They flee a steer" sound great (and look fantastic on the page with a bright creature reminiscent of Babe the Blue Ox), but it introduces a new word "flee," in a very clear context with the worried expressions the cats wear as they are turning to run. On the next page they "steer a plane," and the fun plays on words continue until they get off track, but then the tale is reigned in by the cats' tails.

I hope this review has piqued your curiosity about this lovely book that is sure to delight clever kids of all ages (When my 14-year-old daughter heard my son and I talking about it as I was writing up this review, she also said she thought it was "cool," so apparently it grabbed her attention at some point when it was lying around.).

5.0 out of 5 stars Cat Tale March 15, 2013

By Patricia H. Powell

Format:Hardcover

This is so fun to read. I can't wait to read it to a young kid. Then to older kids. What a great study of homonyms. But what I like best are the way the sounds roll off your tongue, the tightly rhyming lines. Love it. I'm officially a fan of Michael Hall.

4.0 out of 5 stars Great for teaching homophones! December 2, 2012

By Reading in Rheems

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

This is a delightful book illustrating homophones and multiple meaning words in use. My second grade students loved it, but it can definitely be used for higher grades. My students did not always "get" how some of the words can have more than one meaning.