Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Review of Bad Kitty

In an earlier post (March 3, entitled "Weekend Warrior") I lamented having only one reader for Bad Kitty. First order of business...I was so preoccupied with the topic I forgot to properly cite this book. I will remedy that oversight now.

Bad Kitty by Nick Bruel is a charming ABC book for children. My daughter picked this book at a Scholastic book fair. I was hesitant at first, encouraging her to choose something at her reading level (I admit I was pushing chapter books.)

Once we placed the book in our collection it became one of the household favorites. The pictures are colorful and fun. There is a prevailing sense of silliness. Cat lovers (and haters) will find something familiar. My children love to read along with us (my husband and I sometimes read in tandem) and the kids add the sound effects.

Bad Kitty is not your every day alphabet book. The Kitty is a character you can care about and unlike other ABC books has a plot with tension. The author has identified some unusual phrases and words to keep the rhythm and interest of readers. The best part is the ending...

Age recommendation: Great for emergent, developing and fluent readers of all ages.

Bonus: The cover pictures lend themselves to pre-reading predictions. Ask children to make predictions about why the Kitty is "bad." Also, how might the character on the back cover contribute to the story?

2 comments:

DisplacedTexan said...

and don't forget...nobody eats Uncle Murray! YAY!

Unknown said...

my 5-year-old reads this book almost everyday - for the last 6 months. i agree that it is a good book, and a GREAT abc book. but, what is xigua? i'll have to google that.