WWW.PUBLISHERSWEEKLY.COM 69Review_CHILDREN’S
boy and his mother have arrived, looking for a lost kitten of
their own. In a cool palette, mixed-media illustrations by
Ruiz add depth to the simple story, enlivening the text with
dynamic forms, intricate architecture, and interesting
angles. While the tale’s climax lasts for only a moment,
the narrative serves as a warm testament to community.
Ages 3–7. (Oct.)
Everybody Says Meow
Constance Lombardo. HarperCollins, $17.99 (32p) ISBN 978-0-06-
268988-7
“Welcome to that magical time when everybody says,
‘Meow!’ ” begins a wide-eyed, toothy cat. As a clowder
gathers (“MEOW!”), a dog peeking around the page’s edge
immediately foils plans with a “Woof.” Quickly adapting to
the hound’s verbal limitations, the cat announces a new
plan: “Everybody says, ‘Meow.’/ One guy says, ‘Woof.’ ” The
only problem? The frog that shows up out of nowhere (“DID
SOMEBODY SAY, ‘RIBBIT’?”). It’s easy to see where
things are going, and when the lead feline declares the
moment “that magical time when everybody says whatever
they want,” the colorful crew joyously celebrates with the
noise of their choice—until another newcomer arrives with a
page-emptying sound of its own. Working in pen, ink, and
watercolor, Lombardo’s bright scenes focus all the attention
on her cast as they discover that not everybody says “meow”—
and that more friends make things much more fun. Ages
4–8. (Nov.)
Cats Are a Liquid
Rebecca Donnelly, illus. by Misa Saburi. Holt, $17.99 (32p) ISBN 978-
1-250-20659-6
Inspired by an actual scientific paper, this amusing STEM
picture book explores whether and how cats are a liquid
“based on the way cats... fill up any container they squeeze
themselves into. As Donnelly’s loose, easy rhymes (“Cats
slop./ Cats plop./ Cats drizzle,/ slosh,/ flop”) playfully probe
the proposition, cleverly riffing on
liquid’s qualities, the book’s humor is
largely visual. Digital illustrations by
Saburi fully exploit the investigation
with screwball scenes of kitties stuffed
into beakers, lying melted in a patch
of sun, drifting through the sky like
mist, and wreaking classic cat havoc as
they’re tested by an inclusive group of
child scientists. As Donnelly and Saburi display, liquid-ish
felines make delightful, funny subjects for scientific research
and picture books alike. Back matter includes a recipe for
cornstarch “oobleck” and further information about the sci-
ence joke at the heart of the book. Ages 4–8. (Oct.)Blue Cat
Charlie Eve Ryan. Starberry, $17.99 (32p) ISBN 978-1-63592-134-2
A darling, curious kitty stars in this rhythmic story. With
rough-hewn textures and classic colors, Ryan’s collage-like
illustrations feature Blue Cat doing what cats do best: lounging,
stretching, swatting at toys, purring in human arms, and very
nearly knocking something over. A slight element of mystery
is introduced when “Blue Cat listens,” mouth in a little round
o, to something off-page and then “peeks,” “sneaks,” and
“creeps” toward it before pouncing. What does the fearsome
feline stalk? The presence of a large red food bowl tucked
beside Blue Cat’s own smaller bowl offers a hint. A quiet book
about lively household exploration. Ages 5–6. (Oct.)Mr. Cat and the Little Girl
Wang Yuwei. Clavis, $17.95 (32p) ISBN 978-1-60537-488-8
Yuwei flips human and feline timelines through the
melancholic and contemplative story of a painter named
Mr. Cat and the small sprite of a girl he finds beneath a
leaf and takes home as autumn gives way to winter. A solitary
gray feline, Mr. Cat isn’t used to having a houseguest (“Get
off my TAIL!”), but before long the girl—whose touch
magically causes plants to grow—becomes a source of
artistic inspiration, and the muted winter scenes gradually
fill with color as friendship blossoms. Though the pair’s time
together is brief (“Lifetime... one winter,” the encyclopedia
reads), she leaves Mr. Cat with joyful memories of their
ephemeral friendship. This quiet story about loss and the
fleeting, seasonal nature of life may be too opaque for younger
readers, but the careful, softly shaded illustrations are gently
luminous. Ages 5–up. (Oct.)What Cats Think
John Spray, illus. by Mies van Hout. Pajama, $19.95 (44p) ISBN 978-
1-77278-087-1
Are cats capable of poetry? They are in this volume, which
imagines their interior lives through 20 short poems, some
more predictable than others. In “Dream,” a serene gray puss
blends into its lavender-gray backdrop, musing “I close my
eyes and dream.../ Of saucers filled with steamy milk./ Rivers
of creamy moo-cow juice.” A page later, “Angry” somewhat
features an aggressively scribbled black cat arching its back
upon discovering “You threw away my scratching post!” Color
pours off each page in van Hout’s vibrant, bold illustrations—
a mix of acrylic ink, oil pastels, and gouache. His felines
expressively embody Spray’s emphatic free verse, which
authentically gives voice to cats’ changeable emotions. Ages
6–10. (Oct.)