by J. E. Morris.
Horn Book Flubby the cat won't do any tricks, no matter how much his owner Kami tries. Increasingly frustrated, Kami declares: ‘Flubby is NOT a good pet!’ But when a thunderstorm begins, Flubby and Kami realize they need each other. The short, repetitive sentences are clearly designed for new readers. Minimalist illustrations humorously feature other animals doing tricks for their humans, while Flubby only says meow and falls asleep. (c) Copyright 2021. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. (c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. Kirkus Meet Flubby, a quintessential cat. Flubby, a rotund gray-and white cat with stubby legs, seems unimpressed by his owner's expectations of pet behavior. He won't sing like Kim's bird, catch like Sam's dog, or jump like Jill's frog. Flubby doesn't even run when it rains. But when thunder pounds"KA-BOOM"cat and kid need each other. Morris limits her palette to muted shades of brown, blue, gray, and green with an occasional spot of orange. Short, declarative sentences follow a predictable pattern and complement the spare illustrations. Cartoon panels opposite full-page pictures move the simple story along. In one memorable double-page spread, the actionof the child throwing a ball while Flubby watches and then rolls over to sleepmoves readers' eyes left to right across the spread in three stacked, horizontal panels. A full range of emotions, including happiness, frustration, boredom, concern, disappointment, fear, is conveyed with subtle changes in posture and eyes. The human characters are a multiracial mix. Kim presents Asian; Sam appears black; Jill seems white. Flubby's owner is not gendered and has longish brown hair and brown skin. Series companion Flubby Will NOT Play with That! publishes simultaneously.Nonjudgmental encouragement for new readerseven if they flub up. (Early reader. 5-8) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission. Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission. Book list A young child’s cat, Flubby, isn’t like other pets. Kim’s bird sings, Sam’s dog catches, but, despite best efforts to teach Flubby tricks, he not only seems disinterested, but he also doesn’t comply or try. Sometimes he even does the opposite! For example, Jill’s frog can jump, but Flubby? Even after the kid, whose gender is unspecified, models jumping, Flubby, who’s been napping on his back, paws in the air, leisurely gets up, stretches, and yawns. But when a noisy thunderstorm comes (“KA-BOOM”), the pair get an opportunity to learn the mutual rewards of pet ownership, mostly in the form of sharing comfort and hugs. Short, simple text, accessibly written for new readers, is enlivened with interspersed speech-bubbles and humorous asides. Appealing, animated, colorful comics-style illustrations both depict and expand the story, such as in a montage in which Flubby's owner attempts to get the cute, stripy-tailed, bulky cat to catch, to no avail—Flubby merely watches the ball go by, then has a snooze. A droll and sweet read that cat fans especially will enjoy. From Booklist, Copyright © American Library Association. Used with permission. |
