Through the Looking Glass Children's Book Reviews
Cat & Dog
Picture Book
For ages 4 to 6
Andersen Press, 2014 ISBN: 978-1467751247
One night a cat finds an old cardboard box under a bridge and she decides to spend the night there with her three little kittens. In the morning Cat smells fish and she decides to investigate, telling her children to stay where they are. Cat goes up to the street, investigates a fishy smelling van and then jumps into the vehicle. Then, before she can jump out again, the back doors of the van are closed and a man drives the van away. The kittens are all alone.
As it is getting dark, a scruffy, old dog comes over to where the frightened kittens are waiting for their mother. He goes to sleep not too far from where the kittens are huddled in the cardboard box. At some point in the night the dog wakes up to find that the kittens are climbing over him. They are cold and ask if they can “warm ourselves next to you.” The dog wraps his tail around the youngsters and goes back to sleep.
In the morning the dog brings the kittens some milk and he protects them from other dogs and foxes. Eventually the fishy smelling van returns and Cat jumps out of it. She runs to where her kittens are waiting for her. At first she tries to scare the dog off, but then her children tell her that the dog took care of them while she was gone. Then Cat tells the kittens, and the dog, what happened to her.
In this wonderful picture book Michael Foreman, who has won several awards for his amazing children’s books, tells the story of an unlikely friendship and an adventure. We also see how a rather unusual family is created when times get hard. His story warms the heart and it ends with a wonderful message that is full of hope.
