Book talk: Cat Talk by Patricia MacLachlan and Emily MacLachlan Charest

Wouldn't you love to get the inside scoop on a cat's life, told from the perspective of the cat himself?

That's what this wonderful book of poetry does. I love all these cats, but I have three favorites.

Lily tells us she was born in a big red barn, with cows, horses, and sweet-smelling hay. Lily has a secret that she'll only share with you: her best friend is a mouse! [Show picture of Lily.]

Sylvie is the boss. I mean, THE BOSS. You don't mess with the boss. "I am the boss cat. / I twitch my tail to prove it. / I boss the dogs. / I boss my people." There are three things which Sylvie loves, and if you read her poem, you'll know not to mess with them. You don't want to get in trouble with the boss! [Show picture of Sylvie.]

Eddie is cat with a job!"I greet people at the office door. / I sleep on the copy machine. / I run to the phone when it rings." And when Eddie is tired, he closes his eyes and pretends that you aren't there at all. He's really good at living in an office and not letting the chaos get to him.

There are other cats I didn't have time to tell you about. Read their poems in Cat Talk by Patricia MacLachlan and Emily MacLachlan Charest.

Cat Talk by Patricia MacLachlan and Emily MacLachlan Charest, illustrated by Barry Moser. Unpaged. Katherine Tegen Books, 2013. Booktalk to grades K-3.

Booktalk: Dewey the Library Cat [All things library; 1]

People who work in libraries are used to finding all sorts of stuff in the library drop box: you know what that is, right? You’re outside the library, and you open up the slot and put your books in and you hear them drop into a bin. People mostly put their returned books in the bin, but sometimes people use it as a trash receptacle … or worse. A librarian named Vicki Myron and her colleague were extremely surprised one day to find a tiny, semi-frozen, frightened little kitten in their bin. Someone had put this tiny, neglected, half-starved kitten in the drop box. They found out the kitten was 8 weeks old, but it looked 8 days old. You could see the poor kitten’s every rib: it was that thin. Vicki gave the kitten food, a warm bath, lots of care, and love. The kitten survived, and lived in her library! They named the kitten Dewey, after the Dewey decimal system which libraries use. The patrons who came into the library loved Dewey. Often, he’d find someone in a bad mood. He’d plop himself right down on that person’s lap and take a nap. How can you be in a bad mood with a beautiful cat snoozing on your lap? It’s impossible. Dewey considered every part of the library to belong to him, and children and their parents would come in just to see him. Dewey the Library Cat: A True Story by Vicki Myron.

Dewey the Library Cat: A True Story by Vicki Myron with Bret Witter. 214 p. Little, Brown, 2010. Booktalk to intermediate grades, middle school.