The Three Little Kittens - Hardcover

Alter, Anna

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0805064710 ISBN 13: 9780805064711

Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR), 2001

Synopsis

A charming retelling of the beloved nursery rhyme about three little kittens in search of their mittens.

The three little kittens
lost their mittens
and they began to cry . . .

Young children have enjoyed and recited this beloved nursery rhyme for many generations. But in this playful interpretation, there's a friendly little thief behind the kittens' lost mittens. Preschoolers will love following the culprit on his courageous quest. Who is this pointy-nosed, long-tailed mischief-maker? You'll just have to see for yourself!

About this title

About the Author

Anna Alter is a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design, and the author and illustrator of Estelle and Lucy. Anna lives in Boston, Massachusetts where she divides her time between creating children's books and teaching young children.

Reviews

reS-Gr 1-In this abbreviated version of the traditional rhyme, pale watercolors portray a family of cats that unwittingly share a house with a family of light-fingered mice, the real culprits behind the missing mittens. Although not mentioned in the text (the words to the rhyme), at least one mouse is shown sneaking off the page, having filched something. When the kittens discover the thieves and report to their mother that they've recovered their missing mittens, they are rewarded with pie. Unrepentant, the mice steal a slice of their own to share among themselves, while they have already started taking the mittens back from the unsuspecting felines. The animals are portrayed in a soft style and are slightly anthropomorphized. Some wear a jacket or a dress, but others wear nothing. Sometimes the kittens walk on all fours, but other times they sit at a table and eat off plates with forks. The cats are round and squinty-eyed, giving them a somewhat dazed and sleepy appearance. Although other versions of this rhyme exist in picture-book form, especially Paul Galdone's Three Little Kittens (Clarion, 1986), Alter's interpretation is a worthy addition, especially in larger collections.

Jane Marino, Scarsdale Public Library, NY

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

A pair of books retells the tale of the famous feline trio. Anna Alter's soothing watercolor and colored pencil illustrations complement a new twist on The Three Little Kittens. Alter credits the loss of the kitten crew's belongings to a pack of mischievous mice. Cream-colored endpapers feature a pattern of pies and mittens.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Ages 2-5. Humor injects vitality into Alter's entertaining take on the traditional nursery rhyme. The kittens, who are miffed at being scolded for losing their mittens, spy a scavenging mouse retreating into its hole. Peeking inside the hole, the kittens spy their mittens littering the floor of the otherwise tidy mouse domicile. With outstretched paws, the kittens snare their property, and then happily await pie. The mice, however, have the last laugh: they, too, sit down to a piece of pie, pilfered from mama cat's kitchen. Using colored pencil and watercolor, Alter creates such soft-looking critters that children expect the pages to feel like fur. The words of the rhyme are spaced on the page for best effect, and the homey details of the animals' clothing and household furnishings add extra appeal and charm. Ellen Mandel
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Edition details

• Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)
• Publication date: 2001
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0805064710
• ISBN 13: 9780805064711
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: Alter Anna
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 32