A note about The Cuddlywumps Chronicles

This blog is written and maintained by Miss Cuddlywumps, a fluffy-tailed calico cat who is both classically educated and familiar with mysteries. She receives creative input from the Real Cats and clerical assistance from She of Little Talent (old SoLT, a.k.a. Roby Sweet). Comments or complaints should be addressed to Miss C rather than to old SoLt (Ms. Sweet). Ms. Sweet accepts no responsibility for Miss C's opinions.

Monday, August 1, 2016

Book Review: The Little Grumpy Cat That Wouldn’t (Grumpy Cat)

Remember Little Golden Books? Those picture books with the instantly recognizable golden spine? Yes? Well, now Grumpy Cat has her own Golden Book, and it is…not awful. Grumpy Cat might think everything fun is just awful, but her book is fun and not awful at all.

As you might expect, The Little Grumpy Cat That Wouldn’t is filled with rich illustrations accompanied by short bits of text that are perfect for reading aloud. There are even opportunities for doing different voices, if you’re into that sort of thing. (She of Little Talent read the book to the Real Cats and did cute little voices that sort of all sounded the same. At least she tried. The Real Cats slept right through it.)

The story is typical Grumpy Cat. She is an adorable little cat who is just plain grumpy. She doesn’t like anything or anyone. She does not want to play with any of the cute animals in her world. You know how sometimes you’re in a low funk and just want to curl up and binge watch your favorite show, but some happy fools keep trying to make you do “fun” things with them? That is awful and so annoying, and that is what Grumpy Cat is facing. She wants to be alone, and she finally gets her wish. My question is, is she happy at the end? Discuss.

Okay, getting back to our review…The Little Grumpy Cat That Wouldn’t is a beautiful book. Steph Laberis’s colorful illustrations are superb and are a joy to look at. And the story’s end does leave plenty of room for discussion. Is it good that Grumpy Cat finally got what she wanted, or is it kind of sad that she drove her friends away by refusing to engage with them? Or are they just really crappy friends for not giving her some space from the start? I leave it to you to decide after reading the book.

Highly recommended!



A note on the "Paws Up" system: Miss C gives either one or two paws up. One paw is for a good read; two paws is for a great read. She never gives three or four paws because that would require her to lie on her back...and Miss C does not do that!


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