From Publishers Weekly
Francis, an unusual cat, hunts carrots instead of birds and adores bubble baths. He's also exceptionally fearful, especially of "the whispery hissy monster he hears in the tree in the garden on stormy nights." When Francis mistakenly believes that the monster has kidnapped his young owner, Ben, he bravely attempts a nighttime rescue and ends up getting rescued himself by the very same monster, who turns out to be a big, wild but kindly black feline. Without much development, Francis's relationship to Ben may feel perfunctory to readers, but British author/illustrator Boxall hits all the right visual notes with his bold shapes and vibrant colors. The book takes on a delicious Halloween spookiness when the frazzled marmalade feline (his whiskers looking like lightning bolts of nervous energy) ventures out into blackest night to find Ben. The wild black cat is a striking deux ex machina, created from a chalky outline that makes him look like a half-relief of the night sky. Readers will instantly cotton to Francis himself, because he looks so much like a creation of their own rendered with large, gentle eyes (which match Ben's), a blocky, almost schematic physique and enthusiastically applied orange paint. Ages 3-6.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
reSchool-Grade 1-Francis is a hunter of carrots and a lover of reading, bubble baths, and his friend, a boy named Ben. This orange-colored, wide-eyed cat has a secret: specifically, he "is afraid of the dark" and, "most of all,- of the whispery hissy monster" that he knows is in the garden tree on stormy nights. One evening, when Ben doesn't come home on time, Francis faces the night, climbs the tree, and finds that the scary monster he fears is only another cat. The wild, black feline helps Francis out of the tree, whereupon he finds Ben. The large, childlike acrylic and mixed-media illustrations in bold colors will work well for storytimes, and the theme will resonate with young listeners.
Shara Alpern, The Free Library of PhiladelphiaCopyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
