Book Summary:
This little book has a series of poems in it, of various formats, discussing the traits and behavior of cats in various situations and one including a dog and cat who are friends, "Q-tip" and "Rosie." Quite a few rhyme. The style of illustration appears to be paper cut outs, but are graphically done. They will appeal to the younger reader.
APA Reference:
Franco, B. (2009). A Curious Collection of Cats. Berkeley: Tricycle Press.
My Impressions:
I found the book to be visually fun and charming, even though the poems are trite and unoriginal, and mostly rhyming, such as one titled, "Balancing Act," where the poem is, "Kabob's an agile athlete. His balance is sublime. Even falling upside down, He lands upright each time." The illustrations are fun, colorful and contrast well. I think they are the highlight of the book.
Professional Review:
"We’ve had a fair amount of dog poetry in the last few years, so it’s only fair that cats get their turn too. Franco offers thirty-two verses devoted to the feline kind, each one featuring a specific, often named, cat or two, and describing a particular attribute or behavior. Verse forms are varied, including haikus and ballad-meter stanzas (and a limerick to boot). Though they’re classified as concrete poems, many of them are simply creatively laid out rather than genuine examples of the genre, and the poems rarely rise above the serviceable from a technical, writerly standpoint. Nonetheless, there’s charm in their individual engagement with their subject cats, and readers will enjoy recognizing their own cats’ characters in the verses. Some of the illustrations are rather overbusy, and the graphic impact tends to overpower the text and make it difficult to read; the digitally worked monoprints have the strong-figured vigor of woodcuts, though, with their emphasis on outline and element balance rather than texture. This could entice readers who fell in love with Janeczko’s A Poke in the I (BCCB 6/01) or Sidman’s Meow Ruff ?(BCCB 5/06) and, of course, cat lovers, who may find it inspiration for creating feline verses of their own Review Code: Ad -- Additional book of acceptable quality for collections needing more material in the area. (c) Copyright 2006, The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois. 2009, Tricycle, 40p., $16.99. Grades 4-7."
Library Uses:
Students could write their own cat poem with a paper cut out designing it to share with the group.
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