babysitting

Katie the Catsitter by Colleen AF Venable

| Tasha
Cover image

Katie the Catsitter by Colleen AF Venable, illustrated by Stephanie Yue (9780593306321)

Katie’s friends are heading away to sleepover camp for the summer but Katie and her mother can’t afford for her to attend. When Katie discovers that she can go for just one week, she creates a plan to earn money in their apartment building. Unfortunately, she kills houseplants, isn’t strong enough to lug groceries up the stairs, and cleaning is a bust too. But when a neighbor discovers that Katie has a way with cats, she asks her to cat sit her 217 cats, who luckily are trained to use the bathroom rather than litterboxes. Very quickly, Katie realizes that these are not normal cats. They use the computer, 3D print things, order pizzas, and destroy the apartment. Just when Katie is about to lose yet another job, the cats come together and repair the apartment before their owner returns. As she continues to cat sit, Katie starts to believe that the owner just might be the infamous burglar who has been roaming the city despite the local superheroes searching for her.

This middle-grade graphic novel is purr-fect feline fun. Set in an urban area filled with less-than-super heroes and crafty villains, Katie’s life is rather mundane. She goes to school, spends time with her single mother, and looks forward to postcards from her best friend. That all changes when she starts cat-sitting and the fascinating cats take over her life. Their naughty evil natures as well as their technology skills make for an unusual job.

The art and words work well together, creating a world primarily set in the single building and the surrounding neighborhood. Full of expressive characters, dynamic cats and strange superheroes, the book is funny and has just the right amount of quirkiness.

A great book for cat lovers and babysitters alike. Appropriate for ages 9-12.

Reviewed from e-galley provided by Random House Kids.

Review: How to Babysit a Grandpa by Jean Reagan

| Tasha

how to babysit a grandpa

How to Babysit a Grandpa by Jean Reagan, illustrated by Lee Wildish

Done in the format of a how-to guide, this book takes a warm and cheerful look at a grandparent coming to babysit.  Except in this book, the child thinks that he is the babysitter.  He tells you how to stay quiet when you are hiding from your grandpa and what to feed your grandpa (hint: it involves a lot of ice cream and cookies).  Then there are walks to take, entertainment to provide, and lots of playing together.  When your grandpa finally announces naptime, it’s time for his nap.  Get him a long book to read, and he will be asleep in no time.  But since you are the babysitter, you have to stay awake.  You can wake up your grandpa later, help tidy the room, and then get ready for your parents to return.  Make sure you have some parting gifts for your grandpa, since he’s sure to miss you a lot.

What could have been an overly-sentimental picture book is taken to a sweet and comfortable level thanks to Reagan’s use of the how-to format.  I also appreciated that the little boy in the story did not use any of his advice to be naughty.  Instead, he took his duties very seriously.  Reagan’s writing has a great playful quality to it.  It is also writing that reads aloud very nicely, thanks to its light touch.

Wildish’s illustrations have a humor to them that adds to the book.  When the book says in a straight-forward tone that on a walk in the cold, grandpas need to be bundled up, she shows us a grandpa so very bundled that he cannot move.  In sun grandpas need sunscreen, and the image shows the boy emptying a bottle of sunscreen onto his grandpa’s head.  Small silly touches that really make the book fun.

A great book for grandparents to bring to share with their grandchildren, this would also make a great additional to a story time about grandparents.  Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Reviewed from copy received from Alfred A. Knopf.