Carnegie and Greenaway Awards: There Are No Cats in this Book
Our furry friends from There Are Cats in This Book – Tiny, Moonpie and André – have returned, and this time they are filled with the spirit of adventure – they are off to see the world! They have their suitcases packed and are ready to set off – but they can’t seem to get out of the book. They try pushing their way out, and jumping their way out but nothing works. Finally they decide to WISH themselves out and they are going to need your help!
I absolutely adore this book; in fact I think it may well end up being my favourite of all the Greenaway books this year. This follows on from ‘There Are Cats in This Book’ which was on the shortlist for the Greenaway Award last year. The title is of course misleading to a degree as there are cats in this book. This time however the cats want to escape and see the world and they need your help.
The pictures in this book are great, simple but tell a story all on their own. There is a very basic storyline, but what is the most important is the way that it is told. The cats in this book talk directly to the reader, something that is bound to appeal to little ones, but again a class full of 11 year old loved it too. In fact when the cats ask them to close their eyes and make a wish they did just that with no cajoling from me! It involves the reader in the story so that they can feel as though they have contributed to how it turns out. It has pop ups and postcards which also will appeal to pre-schoolers.
Reviewed by Alison