June 2022: Cats

[Manybooks, Fiction Club host]

Kathryn wrote: "Manybooks wrote: "And yes, I really do find the entire Into the Wild series intensely problematic as Erin Hunter not only promotes and celebrates feral cats, she is also very much against (in her n..."

Being against "fixing" cats is unacceptable in my opinion.

[Manybooks, Fiction Club host]

Kathryn wrote: "Manybooks wrote: "And yes, I really do find the entire Into the Wild series intensely problematic as Erin Hunter not only promotes and celebrates feral cats, she is also very much against (in her n..."

And this series totally glorifies felines living ferally and totally seems to vilify indoor cats.

[Manybooks, Fiction Club host]

Can We Save the Tiger?

Indeed, for a longer non fiction picture book geared towards (in my humble opinion) older children from about the the age of eight or so onwards (although even interested teenagers and adults might find Can We Save the Tiger? a good and decent general introduction to current, to 20th and 21st century extinctions primarily caused by human interference and human behaviour), yes, Martin Jenkins’ featured text for his Can We Save the Tiger is both wonderfully informative and is equally penned in an approachable manner that is easy to read and also rather personable and chatty. But thankfully and appreciatively, even with his use of approachability and talking to his readers on a simple and personal level, Martin Jenkins also resists textually falling into the trap of using artificial humour, word plays and the like, with his words in How Can We Save the Tiger always appearing academically rigorous enough as well as very clearly pointing out and never losing sight of the fact that the extinction and the disappearance of far far too many species of animals and plants since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution is a real and globally encompassing threat to biodiversity, to the earth and its denizens and not something to make light of or to make jokes about.

Now with regard to the actual contents and thematics of Can We Save the Tiger?, I do very much appreciate that Michael Jenkins tries to be balanced with regard to his writing. For it is most definitely rather refreshing that in Can We Save the Tiger? Jenkins does not just automatically and totally, utterly condemn and denigrate humans and humanity altogether regarding modern day animal extinctions, that Martin Jenkins points out the extinction crisis of the modern, of the current world and our collective responsibility and fault for this but also shows that we need to engage in conservation programs and efforts not unilaterally and one-sidedly but by working in tandem and in conjunction with local populations and taking the concerns of those same locals into consideration if there is to be any hope of even remotely conceding. For well and truly, one cannot simply for example condemn the fact that tigers are often shot by farmers when tigers stalking and killing livestock is a huge financial burden for in particular those farmers who own just a bit of land and a few cows, goats etc. and thankfully, Martin Jenkins sees and accepts this in Can We Save the Tiger and very clearly demonstrates that conservation is a global effort and one that requires everyone’s input. And albeit I personally do kind of wish that Jenkins were a bit rougher and critical regarding commercial fishing, whaling, the oil and gas industry and in particular the fact that rhino horns and elephant tusks are often sought after for traditional medicines, I also certainly understand Martin Jenkins toning things down a bit in Can We Save the Tiger?, as his more balanced and less blame casting approach does make for a much gentler introduction to extinction and might also get those on board for whom a more finger pointing approach towards the topic could be anathema.

Finally, as to the Vicky White’s illustrations for Can We Save the Tiger?, yes indeed, they make for a very nicely rendered accompanying visual trim, and I do enjoy the combination of black and white line drawings and full coloured pictures and that White’s artwork never visually overwhelms and overtakes Martin Jenkins’ printed words, his featured text. And really, the only reason why my rating for Can We Save the Tiger? is four and not five stars is that while I do appreciate the websites included, I also kind of wish that Martin Jenkins had not only provided online but also traditional dead tree book resources.

[Manybooks, Fiction Club host]

The Lion and the Mouse

Although I am generally not all that much a fan of wordless picture books as a genre (as I simply do enjoy written text considerably more than illustrated images and also often tend to find the former easier to follow and understand), I have indeed found Jerry Pinkney's Caldecott Medal winning wordless adaptation of Aesop's fable The Lion and the Mouse both utterly charming and realistically, imaginatively descriptive, and thus really, truly showing the plot, the story of how a diminutive mouse is graciously released by a lion after she accidentally hides on his back and then repays that same favour by later chewing through poachers' trap lines and in turn releasing the captured lion as evocatively, as realistically and yes, as gracefully rendered as any accompanying narrative text would or could.

With a plethora of detailed depictions of the African savannah, its flora and fauna, The Lion and the Mouse is not only a stunning visual feast, there are also of course the messages of the original fable present, that good deeds have their rewards, that to be kind (and with the case of the lion in many ways acting against his instinctive carnivorous nature with regard to the mouse) have or least can have positive and life-saving results (and that while the mouse shows much courage gnawing through the ropes to release the lion, so does equally so the lion when he originally sends the mouse on her way back to her family, when he neither attacks nor eats her). Four stars and highly recommended (and while Jerry Pinkney's The Lion and the Mouse is due to its wordlessness of course primarily a book for younger children, the images can and in my opinion also should be used for independent storytelling practice with slightly older children, as well as of course discussing the above mentioned messages/concepts, and perhaps even the issues and problems Africa faces and continues to face with regard to the evils of poaching).

[Manybooks, Fiction Club host]

The Happy Lion

I certainly have always adored Roger Duvoisin's expressive illustrations for the 1954 picture book The Happy Lion (especially their muted, yet nevertheless glowing colour schemes, and a lion with such sweet, pensive facial features). But honestly, author Louise Fatio’s entire textual premise regarding The Happy Lion (or Der glückliche Löwe, as it is called in German) has always managed to rather feel at best a bit unnatural and at worst quite troubling, both now and also when I had Der glückliche Löwe repeatedly read to me in 1969 and 1970, when I was three and four years of age (that the lion resides in a zoo, and is all by himself in his rather sparse enclosure, is completely solitary, and that he, that the lion is also seemingly more happy with this kind of an existence than on the plains of Africa, which are actually presented by the author, are depicted by Louise Fatio in The Happy Lion as somehow and strangely being toon hot, too dangerous and perhaps thus even unsuitable for lions).

And well, although I still very much enjoyed the general plotline and the antics of the lion on his romp through the picturesque and nameless French town when my grandmother read the German version, when she read Der glückliche Löwe to three and four year old me, she certainly could not (or perhaps would not) answer my questions as to why a lion residing in a zoo all by himself was supposedly content and happy (and seemingly more contented, more fulfilled than if he lived in wild freedom in Africa).

So yes, upon now rereading after more than four decades (and this time, in English), The Happy Lion is definitely a picture book that has for my personal tastes quite massively lost much of its potential charm (the solitary lion in a smallish zoo enclosure is really so completely not what I would consider a contented and in any way satisfied and naturally kept lion to be that I can only now rate The Happy Lion with two stars at best, the brilliance of Roger Duvoisin's illustrations and even the often inherent sweetness and gentle humour of Louise Fatio's narrative notwithstanding). And while I do realise that this book was originally written in the 1950s, it does not really change my reaction to how the lion is being housed and kept all that much (especially considering that I actually had a very much similar reaction as a small child, in the late 1960s and early 1970s). And while I would not necessarily suggest not reading The Happy Lion to and with children, I do leave the in my opinion necessary caveat that there are most definitely issues that should be discussed, that must be discussed and that some if not perhaps even many children might have the same types of questions that my childhood self had regarding the lion and its (for me so massively problematic) zoo themed and not natural living conditions.

[Manybooks, Fiction Club host]

Mr. Tiger Goes Wild

Maybe I am being just a trifle, just a bit too literal this morning, but with Peter Brown's Mr. Tiger Goes Wild, I do indeed tend to have a few rather annoying thematic and textual issues with especially the last part of the story (namely that if Mr. Tiger really and truly does in fact go wild so to speak, if he for certain has reverted back to being how tigers actually exist and act in nature, he would of course and naturally not be friends and companions with the other animals depicted and presented in Mr. Tiger Goes Wild, but would bien sûr be a predator stalking, killing and yes also consuming, eating them).

And while I have definitely found the accompanying illustrations colourful, fun and engaging and can even very much appreciate the featured included messages and lessons regarding being free to be oneself, being willing to embrace change (and in fact to also be willing and able to lead the way towards the latter, as it is Mr. Tiger who first and bravely decides to embrace his nature, to go wild, even though he later also does realise that he is not an island and still requires and needs his friends and companions), I am personally and logistically just not all that happy and comfortable with author/illustrator Peter Brown having chosen a tiger as the main protagonist of Mr. Tiger Goes Wild (as I am sorry to say, literal-minded I indeed just finds it more than a bit strange and biologically problematic to see and read about Peter Brown's tiger romping and cavorting, being best friends with animals that would in nature usually be considered tiger prey).

[Manybooks, Fiction Club host]

The Lion in the Living Room: How House Cats Tamed Us and Took Over the World

I finally have managed to finish reading The Lion in the Living Room: How House Cats Tamed Us and Took Over the World(which I received as a birthday present), and there is certainly much that is fascinating and educational regarding the author's, regarding Abigail Tucker's presented text.

For one, I do indeed very much appreciate that Tucker has obviously done her research and is giving with The Lion in the Living Room: How House Cats Tamed Us and Took Over the World to her readers (and this basically means to anyone from about the age of twelve or so onwards who is interested in the topics featured in The Lion in the Living Room: How House Cats Tamed Us and Took Over the World) solidly factual information about house cats (not only about the evolution of felines in general but also pointing out how house cats have basically domesticated themselves, thus controlling us much more than we do them, and that unfortunately, house cats are also one of the most worst and most destructive invasive species on earth, and all of this being presented detailed endnotes citing sources).

And for two, I also very much consider it a huge textual positive that even though Abigail Tucker clearly considers herself to be a cat and not a dog person, she is obviously also with The Lion in the Living Room: How House Cats Tamed Us and Took Over the World not ever blind and deaf regarding the environmental destruction outdoor and in particular feral cats can and do cause and in particular in and for areas where until the arrival of house cats there were no endemic feline predators. And furthermore, I do hugely applaud Abigail Walker for showing in her chapter about the so-called Cat Lobby that far too many efforts to control feral cats and to mitigate their environmental destruction potential have been willfully and also nastily thwarted by ignorant morons freaking out regarding any measures to control and manage feral cats, and that for these cats above everything radicals, even trying to spay and neuter both indoor and outdoor house cats is somehow completely unacceptable and downright evil).

But even with there being very very much that is textually hugely positive and also important regarding The Lion in the Living Room: How House Cats Tamed Us and Took Over the World, there are two points of contention for me and enough so lower my original five star rating to three stars. For while Abigail Tucker does in The Lion in the Living Room: How House Cats Tamed Us and Took Over the World feature and point out many of the problems the world faces with regard to in particular feral cats, she does kind of only list these but is not really providing any conclusions, with The Lion in the Living Room: How House Cats Tamed Us and Took Over the World for and to me just kind of stopping and feeling rather like unfinished business (and that yes, I also wish that aside of the source notes, Abigail Tucker would also be including in The Lion in the Living Room: How House Cats Tamed Us and Took Over the World a separate bibliographical list, as this would certainly be much more research friendly than Tucker simply having endnotes).

[Beverly, former Miscellaneous Club host]

Cat Breed Guide: A complete reference to your purr-fect best friend
This book is for older readers than the encyclopedia described in message #37. I would think this book would be geared towards 10 years old through teen years. Younger if they are really passionate about cats.
This book describes 41 shorthair breeds and 27 longhair breeds. Interspersed among the breed descriptions are fascinating facts about cats, such as "Cat Senses," "Amazing Tongues," "Sleep Secrets," "Top 5 Most Famous Film Felines," and many more. The book ends with information on owning a cat: choosing, cat care, training, and more. It is illustrated with scores of clear, large photos of each breed, and photos in the cat facts and cat ownership sections. The back matter includes a glossary, a short bibliography, and index.

[Manybooks, Fiction Club host]

The Diary of a Killer Cat

Honestly, while my inner child has certainly enjoyed the engaging textual simplicity, the pure and exuberant entertainment value of Anne Fine's 1994 Diary of a Killer Cat and delightfully adores feline protagonist Tuffy and finds his first person narrative voice both engaging and personable (and yes, that the textual simplicity of Fine's story is both expected and also in my opinion necessary since Diary of a Killer Cat has obviously and specifically been penned for beginning, for recently independent readers), my older adult self does feel more than a trifle conflicted regarding Diary of a Killer Cat. For albeit as a story in and of itself Diary of a Killer Cat is really and truly laugh out loud funny, will as such likely also be a huge reading hit with many if not even with most young cat enthusiasts (and that Anne Fine oh so effortlessly and successfully incorporating the well known and ridiculous urban myth tale of the resurrected bunny rabbit into her narrative for Diary of a Killer Cat really does make me smile), sorry, but there is one major thematic (and featured content) based issue that for myself as an older adult really grates and actually even rather renders me furious and majorly frustrated (and indeed, my textual enjoyment of Diary of a Killer Cat for my above mentioned inner child totally notwithstanding).

Because let's face the facts here, Tuffy is able to be such an unrelenting hunter and "killer cat" because Ellie and her family in Diary of a Killer Cat are shown by Anne Fine as obviously having no qualms whatsoever regarding letting their pet freely and continuously roam outside and with there even being a designated cat door so that Tuffy can freely enter and exit at will. And well, for me personally (and as someone who is increasingly aware of the fact that domestic cats are an invasive species and can be a major threat to and for birds), permitting pet felines to be outside cats or even both outside and inside cats is (for me) totally unacceptable and also environmentally problematic behaviour and that at the very least, there should be in Diary of a Killer Cat attempts made to keep Tuffy inside, with me also thinking that Anne Fine as an author and as a person probably seems to think that outside cats are acceptable (which for me is certainly not at all the case and kind of makes me, makes my adult self see a bit proverbially red regarding Diary of a Killer Cat, and that my five star rating for my inner child is lowered to only three stars when my adult reading self thinks about Tuffy being often outside in Diary of a Killer Cat and this all being pretty much considered as acceptable by Anne Fine).

[Beverly, former Miscellaneous Club host]

Big Cats: What Do Lions, Tigers, and Panthers Get up to All Day?
Fascinating glimpses into the lives of seven big cats: lions, tigers, snow leopards, leopards, jaguars, cheetahs, and pumas. Arranged hour by hour during one day, The author includes info on hunting techniques, big cat senses and abilities, camouflage, and distribution. Back matter includes a glossary and an index. Informative, colorful illustrations by Chaaya Prabhat.

[Celia]

I read Jeff Goes Wild with a kid this week and figured I would share here.

Jeff Goes Wild by Angie Rozelaar

Jeff is a wild tiger - or a house cat, depending on who you ask.

While romping around like a tiger in his home, Jeff gets in trouble.

"Jeffery Fluffy McSnuggle-Tum! No gourmet kitty treats for you."

"I'm a tiger," said Jeff
"So I really don't care."
And he slunk off for a nap
in his favorite armchair.

While napping, Jeff has a dream (presumably, it's never explicitly stated) that he's in the jungle. He comes across a butterfly and then a snake, which he scares, telling them he's a big scary tiger. But what will happen when he meets an actual tiger?

This book is a lot of fun for younger children preschool age through kindergarten or maybe first grade (the student I read it with was a kindergartener). The rhyming text makes the story predictable and easy for little ones to read along.

The illustrations are cute, nothing too special, but I do like how colorful they are. They depict the jungle well.

I might see if I can steal the extra copy we haven't cataloged yet from my library, as I would enjoy having a copy of this one to share with future kids.

[Manybooks, Fiction Club host]

The Cat and the Rooster


For the Ukrainian folktale Казка про котика та півника (The Cat and the Rooster), adapted by Ivan Malkovych, with accompanying artwork by Kost Lavro and translated into English by Motria Onyschuk, I have enjoyed the combination of text and images, how the cat saves his housemate the rooster from the fox but also captures the fox's family and trashes the fox's house. But while I do not all that much mind anthropomorphism in folklore, I do not enjoy seeing illustrations of animals dressed like humans, so that while Kost Lavro's colourfully stylised accompanying illustrations for The Cat and the Rooster of oversized animals in traditional Ukrainian folk costumes are visually stunning and very decently reflect what is textually shown in The Cat and the Rooster as well as being nicely realistic regarding historical Ukrainian dress culture (with for example Lavro's cat looking like a Cossack and the rooster clad in a caftan, boots and spurs), sorry, but I just do not really enjoy looking at illustrations of animals wearing human clothing and physically looking like humans.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...