Review by Booklist Review
*Starred Review* When it comes to cats, the little girl with a Buster Brown haircut knows what she does not want: A stuffy cat. A huffy, over-fluffy cat. Nor a greedy please-feed-me cat, and certainly not a cool cat. One look at the disdainful Siamese in the illustration, and you know just what the girl means. There's the thinnest layer of actual story here, but the true-to-life hilarity of the text commands attention, especially when mixed with such smart art. With a combination of paint and collage, the images have a three-dimensional feel as they sit on their smooth, candy-colored backgrounds. The girl and her potential felines are drawn using simple shapes, but the bold spreads, with their big images and play on perspective, are truly dramatic. Combine the art with the pithy text, and you've got a book that's perfect to read aloud to groups. Not that individuals won't like it, too. Who can resist the kitten, the glad-when-I-come-home cat that finally wins the day?--Cooper, Ilene Copyright 2010 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 2-Cats may have a reputation for being finicky, but there's not a feline in this book that's as fussy as the little girl telling the story, a companion to I Don't Want a Posh Dog! (Little, Brown, 2009). In fluid rhyming text she turns down a cool cat, a stuffy cat, a greedy cat, and a prize cat. The cat she wants has one important feature-it's a cat she can call her own. Pedigree and distinction cannot measure up to affection, and the one she chooses is just what anyone would want. There is no shortage of charm or humor in this book, exhibited by the artwork. Dodd uses solid colors and heavy outlines to distinguish figures against pastel-colored pages devoid of all background. The illustrations are all on spreads that make full use of the oversize space, even when they hardly take up any of it, as in the case of the "slinky, dinky, twinky cat," whose inability to fill a page personifies its inability to meet the girl's desires. Playful and jubilant, this book for cat connoisseurs will work well as a read-a-loud and for emerging readers who like to have fun with sounds and words.-Kara Schaff Dean, Walpole Public Library, MA (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
A girl spends the book describing what sorts of cat she does and doesn't want ("Not a scratch or scrap cat. / A curl-up-in-my-lap cat"); her desire is ultimately fulfilled. With wit and winsomeness, Dodd's illustrations get across the spectrum of prospective felines. As an exercise in rhyme for cat lovers, the whole thing works wonderfully. (c) Copyright 2011. 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
It's definitely been done beforeby the author herself (I Don't Want a Posh Dog, 2009) as well as by myriad others who've created their own takes on "why my pet's the best." Still, this rhyming litany of all the characteristics the unnamed narrator is not looking for in a cat seems likely to find an enthusiastic audience. The attractive, inventive illustrations have a cartoon-style simplicity but include enough detail and variety to make repeat readings enjoyable. The depiction of the narrator, a young girl with a button nose, bowl haircut and red dress and shoes, remains constant throughout, providing continuity and connection. From the low-key humor of the double-page spread that features a large, chops-licking tiger ("I don't want a big cat") to the engaging internal rhyme of, "I don't want a prowly cat. / A howly, yowly, scowly cat," to the "purry" happy ending, there's plenty for young listeners and adult readers to enjoy. For those who don't want a dull book, never fearDodd's latest is picture- (and pitch-) perfect. (Picture book. 2-5)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
