Bad kitty gets a bath

Review by Booklist Review

This follow-up to Bad Kitty (2005) pairs Bruel's witty asides and spastic, tongue-in-cheek commentaries with more high-energy cartoon illustrations. With hyperbolic humor, Bruel describes the dangerous process of cat bathing, from collecting the necessary tools (including cat shampoo and a suit of armor for humans), to finding and coaxing Kitty into the water, to dealing with your now-clean-though-very-unhappy animal. (One illustration suggests checking your sneakers for something awful inside. ) Following all of the scratching and hissing and spitting, a brief epilogue depicts bathing Puppy, a ridiculously simple process that cleverly highlights the elaborateness of Kitty's ritual. Packed into the chaos are fun facts, such as explanations for why cats hate water and the hows and whys of hairballs; a glossary of common cat sounds ; a few strategically placed editor's notes; and a not-so-serious glossary. Whether they prefer cats or dogs, young and reluctant readers will get plenty of laughs from this comic and informative chapter book.--Rosenfeld, Shelle Copyright 2008 Booklist

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.

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Review by School Library Journal Review

Gr 2-4-Bad Kitty and Poor Puppy are back. This time they are featured in a funny, heavily illustrated "how-to" chapter book that is reminiscent of Kate Klise and M. Sarah Klise's "Regarding the..." titles (Harcourt). The instructions for getting the feline into the water include begging, cajoling, and reverse psychology. The text includes clippings from the Daily Nooz, "Uncle Murray's Fun Facts," a "Quick Quiz," a glossary of cat sounds ("fft!"), and two notes from the editor to the author about what is "unprintable." The resistant cat makes a valiant effort to avoid the procedure but finally-"YEOWR!," "HISSS!"-she is bathed. The pup gets his turn in an epilogue, but without any drama. Bruel's zany illustrations incorporate numerous perspectives that heighten the humor.-Marilyn Ackerman, Brooklyn Public Library, NY (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

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Review by Kirkus Book Review

Bad Kitty usually cleans herself. Sometimes, however,when Poor Puppy chases her into a garbage can, for instance, she really needs a bath. Everyone knows that cats hate baths. "It's not that cats don't like baths. It's not that cats have a difficult relationship with baths...CATS HATE BATHS!" This helpful book gives readersinstructions on how to give Kitty a bath when there are simply no other options. It begins with finding and catching Kitty, which is easiersaid than done. There's a helpful glossary of translations of the sounds Kitty is likely to make during the bath (one entry so R-rated it's censored by the editor), and another glossary at the backof the harder words in the text (including "glossary"). Bad Kitty has made her way through the alphabet and numbers up to 26 in previous outings, and in this heavily illustrated chapter book larded with science facts and plenty of laughs, she proves once again she's a force to be reckoned with. Multiple copies are a must.(Fiction. 5-12) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

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• CHAPTER ONE • PREPARING KITTY'S BATH Do you remember the last time you tried to give Kitty a bath? BE PREPARED. The first lesson that all cat owners must learn is that . . . CATS HATE BATHS For your own safety, please repeat this to yourself four thousand eight hundred ninety-three times. It's not that cats don't like baths. It's not that cats have a difficult relationship with baths. It's not that cats chose not to vote for baths in the last election. It's not that cats would rather choose vanilla over baths. It's not that cats neglect to send baths a card on their birthdays. It's not that cats pick baths last when choosing sides for a kick ball game. It's not that cats think about baths in the same way a fire hydrant thinks about dogs. It's not that cats look at baths in the same way that a vegetarian looks at ten pounds of raw liver. It's not that cats once bought baths an awesome present that cost an entire month's allowance, and then baths didn't even have the decency to say "thank you." It's simply that . . . Think about it this way . . . Despite what most people say, cats don't hate water. Fish live in water, and cats LOVE fish. So most cats don't mind getting a little wet. But cats do HATE baths. That's because cats only like to get wet when they're the ones in control, when they choose to get wet. If someone else has decided to make them wet, they HATE it. And if a cat has to get wet, the water had better be warm. A cat's fur is very good at keeping her warm, but not so good at keeping her dry. So if a cat gets wet in cold weather, that poor cat will have a hard time getting warm again. And that poor cat can catch a bad cold. So, cats should always be bathed in warm (NOT HOT) water. Cats hate showers, too. And they rarely sing old show tunes. Now that you understand that cats hate baths (you will be tested), you will find it much easier to prepare Kitty's bath BEFORE putting her in it. The following are some of the items you will need for Kitty's bath: Excerpted from Bad Kitty Gets a Bath by Nick Bruel All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.

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