They All Saw a Cat

by Brendan Wenzel

A cat takes a walk. A child sees it, impressed by the big round eyes. The following pages show how each animal it comes across, sees it in a very different way. To a dog the cat is a sneaky thing, to the fish a wide blur, to the mouse it is a horrible monster. The views get a bit more sophisticated as you advance through the book. Some creatures see it in black-and-white, others in a kaliedascope of color. A bee sees the cat as various dots, a worm feels it as vibrations through the ground, the snake senses the heat of its body. On the final page- how does the cat see itself?

This book is deceptively simple. The illustrations are bold, the words are repetitive. But that's part of the beauty of it- a young child will just enjoy the pictures and rhythm. An older kid will appreciate the insight into perceptions- not just about viewpoints, but about the different means by which a thing can be known. Art, science and kitties!

Borrowed from the public library.

Rating: 4/5              44 pages, 2016