Through the Looking Glass Children's Book Reviews
Mr. Putter & Tabby Feed the Fish
Illustrator: Arthur Howard
Fiction Series
For ages 6 to 9
Harcourt Children's Books, 2001 ISBN: 978-0152024086
Mr. Putter and his cat Tabby love to go down to the fish store to look at the fish. Mr. Putter had a pet goldfish when he was a boy and he has a fondness for fish. One day, when they are looking at the tanks full of fish, Mr. Putter decides to buy some fish to take home. How nice it would be to have some fish of his own again! Tabby thinks this is grand idea. Fish excite her, making her tail twitch and her whiskers tingle. So Mr. Putter buys three fish and a fish bowl.
When Mr. Putter gets the fish home he puts them in their new bowl and feeds them. They seem to be very happy. Then Tabby starts to bat at the bowl. She bats and bats and bats at the bowl with her paws. No matter how many times Mr. Putter tells her not to bat the bowl, Tabby keeps on doing it. It is quite clear to Mr. Putter that the poor cat just can?t help herself.
Mr. Putter covers the bowl with a pillowcase but Tabby just gets under it. He then covers the bowl with a bucket. This seems to work very well and Tabby is finally able to have some peace. However, Mr. Putter cannot keep the fish bowl covered up forever. What is he going to do?
In this delightful Mr. Putter and Tabby story Cynthia Rylant tells a funny and very sympathetic story about Mr. Putter?s cat. We all have our weaknesses and for poor Tabby her weakness is fish. She just cannot handle being around them without turning into a twitching, batting mass of nerves. Readers will be hard put not to smile as they read this story. Written with a beginner reader in mind, this book is both entertaining and it encourages the young reader to exercise his or her reading muscles in new ways.
