Review by Booklist Review
Salutations to the enthusiastic and energetic Cat the Cat, the next certain-to-be-iconic character from the creator of multiple Geisel Award- and Caldecott Honor-winning titles. In Willems' signature style of thick outlines, basic pleasing colors, clean layouts, and bold, legible fonts, the story follows Cat across the playground as she starts a dialogue with everyone she sees: Can you fly, Bee the Bee?' / Watch me!' / Go, Bee the Bee!' Bird the Bird and Bat the Bat also take their turns in the air as dotted lines and sounds ( Buzz!, Flap!, Flutter! ) follow their aerial paths across the pages. The perfect amount of tension comes when the animals discover Rhino the Rhino atop a pigeon-shaped spring rider. Do you think Rhino can fly? You bet, and soon the whole gang is zooming along in an airplane, having a blast, as will the audience. Kids just beginning to be beginning readers will welcome the arrival of Cat the Cat and her friends.--Medlar, Andrew Copyright 2010 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-K-Using a repetitive vocabulary with few new words added in, Willems offers successful reading experiences for the earliest readers, complete with fun-loving, friendly characters and surprise story lines. In the first book, Cat the Cat meets her friends as she answers the oft-repeated question, "Cat the Cat, who is that?" with "It's Mouse the Mouse!" Questions and answers are in large, bold type while white word balloons with a clear, dark font are used effectively to further the simple conversation. Cat the Cat continues on as she meets Duck the Duck, Fish the Fish, and a strange-looking alien who, after scaring her at first, becomes her new friend. In Let's Say Hi, Cat the Cat asks Bee the Bee, Bird the Bird, and Bat the Bat if they can fly. They all answer "watch me" as they fly away. The story takes a surprise turn as the friends ask Rhino the Rhino if he can fly, and he takes off in his airplane, taking them with him. The animals are drawn with expressions ranging from wide-eyed innocence to surprise as they learn about the world around them. Drawn on a mostly uncluttered sky-blue background with thick black lines, the characters are illustrated in a brighter and wider range of colors than in Willems's previous works. Fans of "Elephant and Piggie" (Hyperion) may think themselves to be a bit advanced for this newest cast of characters, but they will want to join in on these latest adventures where even Pigeon makes subtle appearances.-Kristine M. Casper, Huntington 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.
Review by Horn Book Review
Elephant and Piggie, move over! Willems presents a new series for even newer readers. In the first installment, Cat the Cat, clad in her pinkish-purple dress, greets her many friends -- Mouse the Mouse, Duck the Duck, Fish the Fish -- and happily introduces them to the reader. At each meeting, the friends exchange a few words, and Cat bounces on. With simple phrasing and speech bubbles, Willems tells a story of enjoying old friends and making new ones, even when the new friend is from out of this world. (This little twist at the end is vintage Willems.) In the second book, Cat the Cat meets all sorts of flying animals. Then Rhino the Rhino joins the scene, and the crowd is quite confused as to how he might fly. To Cat's surprise (and the reader's, too), Rhino has a little trick of his own. While the occasional challenging word (such as pleasure) creeps into the text, most of the words are sight words or are easily decoded by the new reader. Bright colors, funny situations, and a cameo appearance by a certain Pigeon will keep these readers captivated and amused...and looking forward to more stories they can read all by themselves. [review covers these titles: Cat the Cat, Who Is That? and Let's Say Hi to Friends Who Fly!] 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.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
The same sort of gentle, surprise ending found in Cat the Cat, Who Is That? (2010) comes into play in this second offering about Willems's new feline character. In this title, Cat the Cat cheers on her friends Bee the Bee, Bird the Bird and Bat the Bat as they show off their flying skills. When she encounters Rhino the Rhino (astride a bouncing pigeon playground toy), Cat the Cat and her winged friends are a bit dubious that he can fly as well. "Watch me!" he says confidently, and a page turn reveals Rhino the Rhino piloting a zippy red plane. This looks like too much fun to resist, so Cat the Cat grabs onto the tail of the plane and zooms through the air calling out, "Let's ALL fly!"and they do. The author has achieved another triumph in this new picture-book series, which also has all of the hallmarks of accessible, engaging beginning-reader fare as well. (Picture book/early reader. 2-7) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
