BUT WHO WILL BELL THE CATS? and THE CAT WHO WOULDN'T COME INSIDE by Cynthia von Buhler

TITLE: But Who Will Bell the Cats?
PUBLISHER: Houghton Mifflin, 9/2009
GENRE: Children's Fiction
READ FREE: link
MY GRADE: B

SYNOPSIS: Finally, the solution to Aesop’s age-old question: But who will bell the cats?

Mouse and his friend Brown Bat are tired of watching the princess’s cats enjoy the life of luxury in the banquet hall of the castle, while they languish on crumbs and sleep in smelly socks.

They are determined to get out of the basement and join the fun and frolicking. But how to get past those spoiled cats who block their every effort?

It will take ingenuity, teamwork, and quite a bit of cunning for Mouse and Bat to succeed. If they can only figure out how to bell the cats . . .

MY THOUGHTS: I'm a little disappointed in this. I don't like how the cat's came to be belled. The mouse and bat could have just asked that person to do it in the first place. The mouse and bat weren't cunning either like the synopsis said. I do like the illustrations because they're very gothic.

TITLE: The Cat Who Wouldn't Come Inside
PUBLISHER: Houghton Mifflin, 9/2006
GENRE: Children's Fiction
READ FREE: link
MY GRADE: A+

SYNOPSIS: All tigers and tabbies, calicos and strays, kittens and cats, need love. And trust. They want things just so. And, sometimes, they do not want to come inside. But a little patience and a little attention can make all the difference.

MY THOUGHTS: This is a very sweet story with a very happy ending. A cat shows up at a woman's house often. The woman offers it something new in addition to the old stuff each time, be it food or a comfort item, then invites the cat in, but it runs away each and every time until one day it decides to stick around in the winter. The book's cover is beautiful. I really like the claymation images. I've never seen it in a children's book before. I do not like the cat's face, as it looks like that of a mouse.