Review by Booklist Review
As in Chicken and Cat (2006), Varon's story is wordless, relying on visual cues to carry the narrative. The two cooperative critters run a housekeeping service where Cat fouls up the cleaning, but saves the day by catching a purse-snatching mouse. Varon's bright, clean artwork is easy to dive into, and the wordless interactions are amplified by facial expressions and body language. While each page is essentially an enlarged comic panel, there are also a few multipanel pages that will help introduce kids to the conventions of graphic storytelling in a picture-book package.--Chipman, Ian Copyright 2009 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
In this second wordless tale about this duo, Chicken recruits Cat to help with his housecleaning business, but Cat doesn't do so well. He breaks a glass, overdoes the laundry detergent, knocks over a bucket of water and takes a bite out of a houseplant-in front of the home-owner. As he sits glumly on the front stoop, Cat's talents are made evident when he foils a mouse-on-ladybug purse snatching, earning the praise of the neighborhood and making the front page of the Daily News. ("Cat Saves the Day!" shouts the headline. " 'The best,' says pal," continues the subhead.) Varon's sensitivity for the feelings of her characters-expertly projected through their gangly limbs and expressive googly eyes-gives the story depth, while the full-bleed spreads and panels jump from the page like movie stills. The tension between Chicken's brisk efficiency and Cat's well-intentioned but flawed efforts is not unlike that between assertive parents and distractible children; young readers will see themselves in the pet-loving dreamer, Cat, and revel in his moment of triumph. Ages 4-8. (Mar.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 2-Chicken and Cat return in this wordless graphic picture book that continues to explore their friendship and adventures. Cat longs for a pet but has no money to buy one, so Chicken invites him to be part of his housekeeping business. The problem is that his pal has no skills and, after a series of cleaning disasters, the hapless feline is banished to the front stoop. There he witnesses a purse snatching, captures the mouse villain, and is celebrated as a hero. With his reward money, Cat buys a pet turtle and Chicken expands his business into a "mousecatching" service. Varon's quirky ink and Photoshop illustrations show the endearing big-eyed duo from multiple perspectives through spreads as well as smaller panels. Readers will love following the tale that Varon so clearly illustrates.-Marge Loch-Wouters, La Crosse Public Library, WI (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.
Review by Horn Book Review
(Primary) Chicken's Housekeeping Services has a problem that can't easily be swept under the rug: it's Cat, Chicken's best friend and assistant, who is more adept at making messes than cleaning them up. After a series of mishaps at a posh brownstone, the homeowner banishes Cat to the front stoop; things look grim for his future in the cleaning business. In this second wordless picture book about the city-dwelling pals (Chicken and Cat, rev. 3/06), comics artist Varon's easy-to-interpret pictures clearly tell the story, making it accessible to a wide range of reading and pre-reading abilities. Panel illustrations alternate with full-page scenes; warm, subdued colors and expressive lines add an urbane flair to the cheerful cartoony art. For Cat, when one (front) door closes, another opens: while sitting outside waiting for Chicken, Cat witnesses a thug mouse steal a ladybug's purse. Cat springs into action, nabbing the purse snatcher, earning the neighborhood's praise and a reward. Plus, he's given equal billing in the friends' new business: "Chicken Cat's Housekeeping Mousecatching Services." Mice and dust bunnies -- you're on notice! From HORN BOOK, (c) Copyright 2010. 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.
