The Cat Who Wore a Pot on Her Head

by Jan Slepian, Ann Seidler, Richard E. Martin (Illustrator)

When Bendemolena wears a tin pot on her head what she hears gets so mixed up that she and her brothers and sisters iron the meat, nail the chairs to the wall, and invite in a bear and a horse.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Humor, Cats, Fiction, Classics, Animals

32 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1967

Reviews

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute little book about a cat who can't understand anything that her mother asks her to do because she is wearing a pot on her head. Chaos ensues. From my childhood.

[babyhippoface · Rating 3 out of 5]

When she was in first grade, my daughter kept asking me to find her that book about the cat who wore a pot on her head. She had read it at school in her classroom library. I had NO idea what she was talking about. I finally just asked her teacher, who took me straight to the book, which was originally titled "Bendemolena". We borrowed it and read it, then amazingly, found a copy of our own at a garage sale. Amazing.

Bendemolena is sort of a feline Amelia Bedelia. That pot she likes to wear comes down over her ears, so she can't understand anything you say. Personally, I liked the questions she asked when she didn't understand what you'd said to her.

[Jason Pierce · Rating 4 out of 5]

4/2/17:

Today was Children's Book Day, so I decided to read a quick one before bed and this won out. It is called The Cat Who Wore a Pot on Her Head. It was written by Jan Siepian and Ann Seidler, authors with pot in their system if this book is any indication.

Bendemolena is the daughter cat who decided to put a pot on her head so she couldn't hear all the noise her siblings and other relatives were always making in their cat house... Make of that what you will... Anyway, she goes with her mother on an errand, and mama cat keeps sending her back home with instructions for her siblings. Since she can't hear properly she fucks everything up, and by the time mama cat comes home the house is in disarray (including furniture nailed to the wall and a horse in the sink), but the kittens are so proud that they've done everything their mother asked of them, and we come to this line:

"Then she looked at her smiling kittens. She just couldn't stay angry. She knew it was all the fault of the pot."

Well, that excuse never held any water whenever I tried to use it, but mama cat is a progressive mother, and this book was written in 1967, so perhaps Slepian and Seidler were hoping for a brighter tomorrow when drugs would be an acceptable reason for being a fuck up. I blame mama cat for the disaster. She should've told Bendemolena to take that stupid thing off her head before they went out because it looks retarded, but then there wouldn't be much of a story here. Here's mama cat's final solution, by the way: "...she took the pot off Bendemolena's head and made two holes for ears in it. Then she put it back on Bendemolena." (Never mind that holes negate the muffling function which was the reason the thing was on her head in the first place)." Mama cat's a much better parent than I ever would be. I would've beaned the stupid shit with the thing.

For the record I've read this more than two times, and trying to assign a count to it would be nigh on impossible. I got it 32 years ago at a book fair kind of thing in first grade. It wasn't really a book fair proper, but just the school library getting rid of some old books. I remember also getting a cup of Pet ice cream afterwards outside which was a real treat in those days. It was the kind you ate with a small wooden paddle, and it was good. So was the book. Sadly, though, the last page has been ripped out of my copy. It seems my nieces and nephews have struck again.

All kidding aside, this is an enjoyable read for tots.

4/3/17 afterword:

Goodreads sent me an e-mail saying "Congrats! You finished The Cat Who Wore a Pot on Her Head." Since I'm tired and cranky, I'm going to let wanton cynicism roll here. When did Goodreads start doing this? Why are they spamming me? Do I really need to be told that I finished this book? Did I not just tell them that I finished it? They even told me what my rating was (which is wrong since I changed it). Doesn't a rating indicate that I finished it?

Also, I'm 38 years old. Goodreads knows this since it has my birthday. Do I really need to be congratulated on finishing this thing? Can they not see that it's below my level? I mean, shit, I just finished Our Mutual Friend a month and a half ago. Where was my congrats then? Hell, I think I deserve a biscuit for that.

Goodreads also thinks I should write a review. I think they need to update their stalking software because it's not doing its job very well. Can it not see that I review everything? It also wants me to check out the other 87 reviews of this book and connect with my fellow readers. Ah, connect with this!

Let's see if I can find my notification settings and uncheck the "harass with inane fiddle-faddle" box.

[Reading With Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Put the boop on the beep? Mup the moop on the deep? Oh! She must have said to iron the meat!” And so goes the story of Bendemolena, which is now called The Cat Who Wore a Pot on her Head. We all need laughter in our lives right now, especially children, and this book has yet to fail to provoke loud laughter from my students when I read it out loud to them. When her mother goes to care for a sick friend for the day, Bendemolena goes along to take messages back and forth to her nine little brothers and sisters of the chores they need to do for the day. Having put the pot on her ears to find some quiet in her noisy house, Bendemolena doesn’t always get her mother’s directions quite right, but somehow in the end, everything works out. Bendemolena’s rhyme schemes provide many opportunities for teaching about rhyming and word play. The well-worn copy that I own has a copyright of 1967 and was in my mom’s classroom library as a teacher. Then it became a favorite of my brothers and I. It is definitely a worthy addition to your home or classroom library.

[Kelsy Bennett · Rating 4 out of 5]

The cat who wore a pot on her head is a funny story about a cat named Bendemolena. She lived among many other cats and to her it was always noisy. She came up with the clever idea to put a pot on her head over her ears so that she did not have to listen to all the noise on cat street. There was a problem, however...she had trouble hearing what anyone was saying because of the pot. Her mother would ask her to do things and she misunderstood just about every time. To help her solve this issue her mother cut two holes in the pot for her ears, now she could hear just fine. I thought this book was funny and very entertaining for children. A way I would use this book in the classroom is maybe to help my students understand problem solving.

[Megan E]

This silly book can be read to the students at any time to show them how animals can be used in books to help their parents although they may not do it the way they are asked. It can show the students that helping their parents can be extremely thoughtful.

[Megan Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

We’ve read this book a hundred times, at about 3 or 3.5 my kids both thought this book was the funniest thing they’d ever heard. It was so fun to giggle along with them as we repeated the silly phrases.

[Cheryl · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some children will go (have gone) nuts for this. I guess I don't have a good sense of humor.

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

My very favorite children's book ever. I even named one of my cats after the main character, Bendamalena!

[Concetta Kellough · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book to a kindergarten class, and the students were fully engaged and laughing throughout the reading. Not too many books get such a great response.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a lovely lively reminder of childhood, and the way mom used to read ‘Bendemolena, Bendemolena’ all sing songy and happy.

[Theo]

I loved this book as a child, and it's still mildly amusing to share with a young kid.

[M. Langlinais · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book as a kid and enjoyed reading it aloud to my own kids.

[Paige Freeman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was drawn to this book because of the funny title. I think that if I were to read this to my kindergarteners they would giggle at the thought of a cat putting a pot on it's head. The humor throughout this story is what resonated with me the most and kept me reading. I would recommend this book to others since it is very humorous and shows why it is important to follow directions. This also can be used for students that are afraid to ask questions and can show what that asking for clarification is a very important skill that students must have. I would use it for that example exactly. I think that it would be great to use as a communication lesson and how to follow directions. This would be beneficial in the beginning of the year when we are discussing school rules and setting classroom guidelines.

[Terresa Wellborn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a classic. I read and loved this book as a child and it's one of the funniest, funnest books around.

The repeated refrain in the became a household saying with me and my siblings while growing up: "Bendamalina, Bendamalina, give me a hug." And did Bendamalina give her mother a bug or a rug? No. She gave her mother just what she asked for, a hug.
xoxo

Themes: cat, chores, misunderstandings, humor
Ages: all
Pub year: 1967

[Tricia · Rating 5 out of 5]

this was my favorite book when i was a little kid. my great aunt would read it to me, and EVERY time i would laugh so hard even though i had heard the story a million times. not sure if it is even still in print, but its a total classic.

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

My mom used to call me Bedemalena. Like this cat who wore a pot on her head I did not always listen but like the cat who wore a pot on her head, I did try.
Best book about cats wearing pots on their head ever.

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a cute read that uses silly phrases to draw in readers. Bendemolena finds a way to keep away the noise of her nine brothers and sisters, but it lead to a bunch of silly mistakes. Would be a fun way to bring about embracing mistakes.

[Tammy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my favorite kids' books. A naive cat, a pot and some funny lines. What more could you want?

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

great story for 5-7 year olds.

[Donna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Silly tale which blends innocence and sweet pictures. Something about it pleases the reader whatever the age.

[Kelley Mcalhany · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute book about being an individual.

[Deborah Harris]

AR Quiz No. 137629 EN Fiction
Accelerated Reader Quiz Information IL: LG - BL: 3.0 - AR Pts: 0.5
Accelerated Reader Quiz Type Information AR Quiz Types: RP

[Edith Bishop · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely adore this book and it made my five year old son howl with laughter. Brilliant.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lesson: listening

[Mckinley · Rating 3 out of 5]

fun

[Nina · Rating 5 out of 5]

A favorite of Zach's.