ABANDONED. Boy befriends a stray cat then goes on a journey

[Molly]

Children’s chapter book (I think no pictures) that starts with a boy who befriends a stray cat with a bowl of milk in an alley, then brings it into his home. It then somehow evolves into him going on a journey; I don’t remember if he brings the cat. He meets a tiger I think and maybe monkeys. The cover of the book is watercolor-esque, and has a jungly scene I think. I read it about five years ago and it seemed vintage or at least very obscure. I really can’t remember much but I had a flashbulb memory.

[Kris]

A guess - The Illuminated Forest by Edwin Fontanez?

https://www.worldcat.org/advancedsear... > Keyword: stray cat journey | Juvenile | Fiction | Book | English

[Kris]

No response, moving to Abandoned folder.

Molly (OP) was last active on the site in April 2020.