Splat! The Tale of a Colorful Cat

When Big Jim Cat is left in charge of his kittens, the results of the painting project he suggests are not quite what he expected.

PreSchool-K?Two pedestrian stories about twin cats named THIS ONE and THAT ONE and their parents, Lady Jane and Big Jim. In Splat, Dad takes care of the youngsters while Mom is shopping. When the kittens can't decide on an art project, he suggests that they paint him. When he falls asleep, they decide to take him up on the offer. Lady Jane returns to find her husband covered in paint from head to toe. In Yum, Lady Jane sends the twins to bed and bakes cookies for her husband to take outside while he fishes. The kittens then sneak downstairs and hide in the picnic basket. When their mother carries the heavy basket down to the beach, the twins surprise their parents with their presence. These stories present some sophisticated ideas that will elude most preschoolers, such as children spoiling their parents' time alone. In both the texts and the flat, one-dimensional artwork, the twins are treated as one identical unit rather than two separate individuals. These books have neither the humor found in Jeffie Gordon's Two Badd Babies (Boyds Mills, 1992), nor the universality of twins who have similarities yet are individuals as found in Holly Keller's Harry and Tuck (Greenwillow, 1993). Consider these titles as celebrity gift-book collectibles?they don't stand on their own merits next to other enduring children's picture books.?Blair Christolon, Prince William Public Library System, Manassas, VA
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