Cats Cats Cats Cats Cats

Cats Cats Cats Cats Cats
Beatrice Schenk de Regniers ~ drawings and design by Bill Sokol
Pantheon, 1958

Man. It feels like forever. I'm back from vacation (drove 3200 miles cross country and didn't go into one thrift/book store, darn it) and summer is in full swing here in Texas. The best news of all is that my son is a reader. Bonafide. Over the last several weeks, he's totally gotten it and been reading everything from simple books to more complicated words. Sitting in the car yesterday driving back into Texas, he was reading words in his dinosaur book and then writing them down, listing them in a notebook. My son read the word IGUANODON, all by his little 'ole self. So proud. Beaming, actually. Sigh. But horn tooting is not why you're here, soooo.....

I have yet to hit the haul my mother gave me while I was visiting my Granna in Virginia, so I've randomly selected from the goodie bag an adorable book about cats featuring the art of mid-century design fave, Bill Sokol. Now, I'm more of a dog person, but who couldn't love a cat with these long, lean lines and eyes full of rascal. Really, don't you just want to pet them?

This utterly witty book includes poems (like the charming "Poem By A Cat" featuring the word PURR typed again and again is a graphically appealing fashion), an amazing dedication that I won't reprint here because it's too long but includes a thank you to every cat imaginable and to every boy, girl and grownup who doesn't absolutely hate them, and a special dictionary to help understand certain cat behaviors. There's even an ode to cats and books.

Whenever you're sitting and reading a book,
Pussy comes over and takes a look.
Then if he likes it, he'll quietly creep on it
And snuggle down and go to sleep on it.

The imagery is wonderful, with simple three-tone drawings that really illustrate that slinky feel in a cat's movement. I might just be in love with this guy Sokol. Before I go out and break the bank picking up his stuff online, I must go back and see what other titles might be lurking on our shelves. You never know. (Oh, by the way, it's great to be home.)Special thanks to Ali for the awesome front and back cover scans...

Also by:
The Snow Party
How Joe the Bear and Sam the Mouse Got Together
The Giant Story