The Cats on Ben Yehuda Street
ISBN 10/13: 0761381244 | 9780761381242
Category: Picture book
Keywords: Cats, neighbors, friends, compassion
Format: Hardcover, Paperback, eBook
Source: Finished copy for review
Things are always the same on Ben Yehuda Street--cats, cats, cats everywhere--and boy do they love Mr. Modiano's store, the Tel Aviv Fish Palace! His neighbor, Mrs. Spiegel, loves to knit and spend time with her cat Ketzie. Ketzie shares fish from Mr. Modiano's shop with her friend Gatito. But old Mr. Modiano hates the cats as much as they love his shop. "Lo, lo, lo," he says, always declining Mrs. Spiegel's invitations to tea. All he wants to do is shoo the cats away (who never listen, by the way!) until one day, Ketzie goes missing. Uh oh!
I have to tell you first about how biased I am in reviewing this book. One, I am a cat lover and a knitter like Mrs. Spiegel. I have my own little gray cat (though she has more stripes than Ketzie). Two, I am friends with Ann. I designed
her website and I think she is such a fun storyteller! Three, I love fish, of which there is quite a lot in this book. If I were to hold a storytime event for this I would probably serve kippered herring, lox (smoked salmon), and maybe seared garlic tuna,
mmmmm! Though all but the most discerning little kids would probably prefer this kind of fish instead:
... not real fish
I loved the story and think it would make a great read-aloud for grandparents and grandkids together. I predict lots of meowing and "Lo, lo, lo"ing! Lots of little clues in the illustrations reveal details about everyday life in Israel, so there's a lot to point out and explain, whether one is familiar with the culture or not. The reader might wonder at Mr. Modiano's mode of transportation, what he's wearing on his head (it took me a couple of reads to figure out it wasn't a beret!), and maybe what Mrs. Spiegel is baking. Most importantly, what could have happened to Ketzie?
Themes like friendship, compassion, and generosity make this a gentle bedtime read. But while I like Carabelli's simple and sweet cat illustrations and painterly backgrounds, there's a certain level of detail I felt was missing. Maybe it's the knitter in me, always trying to spot drawings of yarn and knitted objects, but aside from a couple of balls of yarn, I couldn't really believe Mrs. Spiegel was much of a knitter, and that was a bit disappointing. The colors are also very muted and almost muddy for the most part. But I do like the little fish all over Mr. Modiano's shirt!
Ann is giving away a copy of The Cats of Ben Yehuda and her picture book from last year, The Wooden Sword! To enter, just comment below and answer:
What is your favorite folktale?
This giveaway is open internationally!
We hope you'll join us for the rest of the blog tour as well.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Hi everyone! If you love picture books as much as I do, you'll want to tune in for the blog tour that I am hosting for Ann Redisch Stampler to celebrate the release of her latest, The Cats on Ben Yehuda!
A few kidlit bloggers and I will be featuring her books over the next couple of weeks. Aside from her newest title, we will also be featuring The Wooden Sword: A Jewish Folktale from Afghanistan, which debuted last year.
Here's the schedule! Find out what these picture book lovers have to say about Ann's picture books.
ISBN 10/13: 1442423218 | 9781442423213
From
Goodreads:
Sometimes the end is just the beginning.
Gabby lived under the radar until her makeover. Way under. But when she started her senior year as a blonder, better-dressed version of herself, she struck gold: Billy Nash believed she was a the flawless girl she was pretending to be. The next eight months with Billy were bliss...Until the night Gabby woke up on the ground next to the remains of his BMW without a single memory of how she got there.
And Billy's nowhere to be found.
3 Comments on Where It Began - Signed Hardcover Giveaway, last added: 4/2/2012
Babe the Blue Ox =)