Monthly Archives: November 2021

Negative Cat

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img_1530Book: Negative Cat by Sophie Blackall

A couple weeks ago I made my way into a bookstore to start looking for Christmas gift ideas—of course, I ended up coming home with just as many books for myself, including this new picture book. It was on a table of new releases, and had a cover I could not resist picking up. After reading through it, I knew it had to come home with me.

We start with a boy who is willing to make just about any deal with his parents to get a cat: cat care, extra chores, and reading every night—even though he does not really like to read. He goes to the shelter and picks out his perfect cat, but things are less than perfect once he gets him home. Max the cat is a bit naughty. He gets himself into trouble and doesn’t really get along with anyone. Max is a negative cat, and Mom and Dad are about ready to send him back to the shelter. When it comes time for Max to leave, his boy is not going to let him go! He hides in his room, and discovers the secret to winning over Max: reading.

Although not a true story, parts of the story were inspired by real events at an animal shelter in Pennsylvania, where children are invited to come in to read to the cats. In addition to helping children practice and build confidence in their reading, the interaction helps to socialize cats and has lead to some matching with forever homes!

Along with the sweet story here, I really loved the illustrations. They had a little bit of a retro feel to them that reminded me of some of the older picture books I read as a kid. I liked how some of the story was told through text and some through speech bubbles, with some text mixed in with the layout of the page. My favorite were the pages with all the cats at the shelter, each with a fun name and showing a little kitty personality.

Boris’s Thoughts: “Definitive proof that there should be more reading and less other things. Except snacks. More reading, more snacks! 4 paws.”

Dinosaur Therapy

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img_1448Book: Dinosaur Therapy by James Stewart; Illustrated by K Roméy

Date Read: October 3 to 4, 2021

Rating: 5 (of 5) stars

Here I go again: one more online comic turned book to add to my shelves! These fun dinosaur comics started on Instagram sometime in 2020, and I started following not long after. I admit that it seems a little off to describe a comic about anxious, depressed dinosaurs as “fun,” but I really do think that it fits—the more serious content paired with the colorful, cute cartoon dinosaurs creates something that is both sadly relatable and comedic.

We can laugh because we can see the truth in it, but it also opens the door to a more accessible discussion of mental health. It also fits with one of my personal theories—that memes are the primary millennial coping mechanism. While the online comic is not strictly focused on mental health, I think those that follow in that theme resonate the most. It was definitely the perfect theme to focus on for this collection in book form.

Followers of the original comic account will be happy to see many of their favorites in the book, along with some new content. I thought inclusion of both was well balanced. There are also some updates in style that add a little extra to the book edition—when the comic first began, the frames were a bit simpler and did not include much in the way of background. All comics in the book have the newer detailed background style, and some of that art is really beautiful. Overall, really happy with this book and glad I decided to add it to my shelves!

Minka’s Thoughts: “It is small and cute like me. Approved! 4 paws.”

Cat and Cat Adventures: The Quest for Snacks

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img_1413Book: Cat & Cat Adventures: The Quest for Snacks by Susie Yi

Date Read: October 8, 2021

Rating: 5 (of 5) stars

A few months back, I might have gushed a bit when reviewing this cute collection of cat comics from one of my favorite online artists. Well, that was only the beginning. Less than a year later, the same artist and storyteller has released the first book in a series of graphic novels for children—Cat and Cat Adventures! I am a long time follower of Cat and Cat Comics, and was super excited to receive my copy of this book. Although the story feels separate from the comic world Yi has created online, it features two of the cat characters that readers will easily fall in love with.

Squash and Ginny are not ordinary cats, but they are on a mission that will feel familiar to any cat owner—a mission to eat all the snacks! I feel this is especially true for my two troublemakers, who have become extremely skilled at finding snacks despite my efforts to cat proof the kitchen. There is a panel in the novel of the cats magicking snacks from a cupboard that I am pretty sure is based on actual events in my house. When the cats run out of snacks at home, their quest takes them on a journey through fantastical lands where they meet some new friends and learn a couple lessons along the way.

There are so many things that I loved about this book. As a fan of the online comics, I loved that Yi was able to stay true to the style from that work, but also expanded it with details and framing to fit the novel format. There were some great scenes throughout the book, and the balance of illustrations, text, and dialogue worked nicely. The story was creative—it did not exactly follow the path expected, but still turned out with a happy ending.

Although not completely new to graphic novels, I am gaining a greater appreciation of them recently. I love that they can be used to tell a story in so many different ways through the combination of elements. I think it’s time to break away from the idea that books with pictures in them are only for kids. While this does make graphic novels a great accessible option for beginning readers, I think they are fun for all levels of readers!

Boris’s Thoughts: “Fun I suppose, but I was hoping this was going to be more instructional where it came to actually obtaining the snacks. 3 paws.”

Frankenstein

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img_1149Book: Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

Date Read: October 4 to November 1, 2021

Rating: 4 (of 5) stars

Of course, Boris was right last week: despite the passing of Halloween, it was not the end of the spooky books. I picked this book to read in October for the Unread Shelf Project Prompt: a book you’re secretly afraid of. I was not entirely sure how to apply the “secretly” prompt, since I do not know that I have any books that I am openly afraid of either. I picked this one because it could fit the prompt in two ways: it is a horror story, and it is one that I have been uncertain about starting due to hearing mixed reviews.

My first thoughts as I was reading were that this was not what I was expecting it to be—kind of a silly thought, since I am not really sure what I was expecting. Going in, I only knew the very basics: Frankenstein creates a monster—and Frankenstein is the creator, not the creation. Of course I have seen some pop culture variations on the story, but none in full, so I did not have much to associate with the book itself. After finishing, I would say that the horror aspect was subtler than I had expected. While horror definitely still fits, it is not the action filled, in-your-face type horror.

The “story within a story” framing added an interesting level to the story that I had not anticipated. The novel begins and ends with letters initially unrelated to the main tale, with the story of Frankenstein embedded within them as a story relayed to the letter writer. The initial story contained in the letters follows what I have discovered to be a popular trope from the time period—an adventurer seeking to journey to one of the extremes of the earth, in this case the northern pole. Captain Walton writes to his sister regarding his travels, and then begins to impart the story told by Viktor Frankenstein after picking him up as a castaway. Going beyond simply using this as an entry point for the main plot, the end of the novel loops back to connect the two stories: Viktor’s ambition in creating the monster is paralleled by Walton’s ambition to push forward on his journey, but Walton knows when to stop as his crew begins to fear for their lives on the perilous journey.

This leads in to where the true substance of the horror tale lies—who really is the “monster” in this story? In general, Viktor comes across as the villain, but there is wavering sympathy for both him and his creation woven through the story. The reader is able to feel sympathy for the monster, but it is not totally straightforward, as he clearly does perform evil acts. However, Viktor’s treatment of his creation is the driving force behind the crimes committed—and his seeming inability to recognize his own responsibility for the outcomes tips him further into the side of villain.

Boris’s Thoughts: “As usual, the human botched this one—I bet a cat companion could have solved all of their problems. 2 paws.”

Unread Shelf Progress for October

  • Books Read: 3
  • Books Acquired: 4
  • Total Unread Books: 282