Mr. Cat and the Little Girl
Published October 1st 2019 by Clavis, Hardcover 32 pages
Mr. Cat spends his days alone. When he goes out to paint a beautiful winter landscape, he finds a little girl. He decides to take her home. The girl colors his world... until she disappears
A poetic story about friendship and saying good-bye. For daydreamers ages 5 years and up.
User Reviews
Rating: really liked it
Mr. Cat and the Little Girl by Wang Yu Wei is a book I requested from NetGalley and the review is voluntary. I had a difficult time trying to rate this book, it is such a strange book. It has likeable and unlikable features. I love the art! Wonderful! This is what made me go to the 4 stars instead of 3. The story is adorable until it just stopped.
In a way I felt the author was switching the cat and girl's places. Normally a girl or boy would find a little kitten freezing in the snow. In the house the cat would get into all that mischief. Then the wild would call to the cat and they would leave or death would come. Maybe I am thinking too hard in a children's book! Lol!
Rating: really liked it
[ her life span is not the same as his, in fact she will only live for the winter. As days go by she sleeps more until one day he finds she has gone. He hopes she will return. (hide spoiler
Rating: really liked it
This is a lovely little picture book—with gorgeous, delicate illustrations—which is somewhat reminiscent of the Russian folktale Snegurka, The Snow Maiden. However, instead of an elderly couple who, in their longing for a child, fashion a girl of snow, who then magically comes alive, Mr. Cat, a rather irascible feline artist, discovers a tiny little girl under a single green leaf in the snow. Winter has come early one year, and Mr. Cat wants to capture in paint the brilliant flame-coloured leaves of autumn against the white background of snow. That’s when the discovery is made. Mr. Cat takes the little girl home and cares for her—though she can certainly be annoying, messing with his paints, knocking over fragile objects, and clinging to his head or tail.
Soon he discovers that she has remarkable abilities. The touch of her feet appears to make things grow. Footprints in the snow produce brilliant yellow flowers; contact with her makes a houseplant’s growth take off. Mr. Cat strives to capture the beauty that springs forth with his paints. Alas, like the snow maiden of the folktale or the mythical Persephone, the tiny girl’s time in the world of Mr. Cat is limited, but there is hope that she, and the renewal she brings, will come again.
I think children and grown-ups both (particularly cat lovers) would enjoy this whimsical little book.
Rating: really liked it
What a strange little book! It's surreal, but also kind of charming. Friendship, loss, and hope are all explored here with fascinating illustrations and a unique story.
Mr. Cat is an artist, and one day when he's outside painting, he comes across a tiny girl under a green leaf in the otherwise barren landscape. He takes the girl home with him, and takes care of her almost like a pet. When he takes her outside into the snow, he notices that wherever she steps, yellow flowers appear. Curious, he turns to the encyclopedia and discovers that she's some sort of creature who will only last the season. Eventually, the girl disappears, and Mr. Cat is left wondering if he'll ever see her again.
The illustrations are so wonderfully weird. The cat is drawn fairly realistically, but he's also anthropomorphized quite a bit. He paints at an easel, he wears clothes, and he has his own house, complete with snazzy decor. I loved seeing him take the little girl outside, having dressed her in a little yellow dress and a cat-eared hat. (Can it get much cuter?)
I'm not sure if young children will really "get" the message about loss and hope, but it's such a wonderfully quirky story that it's bound to find some fans. I'd recommend this one for readers who are looking for something slightly different in their picture books. It's worth taking a look at for the illustrations alone.
Thank you to NetGalley and Clavis for providing a digital ARC.
Rating: really liked it
Muted beautifully illustrated pages make this a great bedtime story for children.
Dealing with loneliness,friendship,loss and hopefulness this is better read by children a little older who have a comprehension of loss and waiting.
I would recommend this book.
Pub Date 11 Oct 2019
I was given a complimentary copy of this book. Thank you.
All opinions expressed are my own.
Rating: really liked it
*thank you to Netgalley, Clavis Publishing and Wang Yu Wei for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*
4 stars.
The illustrations in this were quite beautiful. There was such a lovely softness about them even though they weren't very colourful, it matches the mood of this story perfectly.
While I did like the story for the most part, I had a couple of issues with it. I thought it was a rather sweet little story but the fact that the little girl was found, what appeared to be, naked, does unsettle me a bit. But at the same time, I think it was ment to represent her birth in a way so it seems ok that way but I still can't help but feel like it was a bit creepy because the cat is male. Now that is probably not going to be an issue for a lot of people but I do know of a few that it would be one for, so I just needed to point it out.
I liked that she was so tiny though. Like Thumbelina tiny. It made her seem more precious. Mr Cat cared for her and looked after her. Then when Mr Cat learns that the little girl, his new friend, won't always be there, there is a very real feeling of sadness in the illustrations and words. That can be difficult to show to readers in picture books but Wang Yu Wei does such a great job of it. I'm not sure very young readers will pick the storyline up but the older ones will. This book can also touches on the subject of Loss.
Rating: really liked it
Beautiful and very emotional story. Poetic and well illustrated! A story of respect, love, friendship, acceptance, enjoying life while it last. There's some depth in this book that we don't often see in children picture book! Beautiful!!
Rating: really liked it
Cute. I had trouble reading the print because of the way it downloaded, but the illustrations are gorgeous! It would make a nice gift for the children in your life.
Rating: really liked it
What a strange little book. I'm really not sure how to rate this one or what to even think. This short (50 pages) book tells the story of an adult male cat (who wears clothes and paints) who finds a tiny little naked girl and takes her home. He takes care of her even though she frequently annoys him, and grows to enjoy her. She has magical properties, like causing yellow flowers to appear where she's walked and making plants grow bigger. Then she disappears and he misses her, and hopes to find her again.
The whole thing reminded me of some old folk tale, but there's no mention of it ever being one. The illustrations are nice and the tone is kind of nice, but it's also just so odd, and ends rather abruptly and sadly. It's supposed to be a story of loss and I presume it's designed to help children cope with loss, but the fact that the child just disappears and he has no closure or way of knowing if she's coming back means it's not going to resonate with kids who have lost a pet or loved one to death.
There is kind of a cool tone to this book, but it's likely to just confuse a lot of children (and adults).
My rating system:
1 = hated it
2 = it was okay
3 = liked it
4 = really liked it
5 = love it, plan to purchase, and/or would buy it again if it was lost
I read a temporary digital ARC of the book for the purpose of review.
Rating: really liked it
I just lost my dearest companion in July. He should have lived to 40, but I guess only rare cats live that long. So sad. I loved this story. A twist on our life expectancy, Mr. Cat finds a very tiny human girl. Poignant tale. A little too soon for me, but lovely story. The illustrations were magical; muted colors, lovely.
Rating: really liked it
(ARC|GIFTED|NETGALLEY). This format was super difficult to read and I found the story itself really odd. It wasn’t bad but it wasn’t necessarily good. I would be intrigued the book in paperback form as I do wonder if perhaps that made the whole experience harder and I did love the illustrations.
Rating: really liked it
This one is a bit strange, but I really liked it. I’m not sure who the audience will be for this one. Possibly cat lovers and little girls. The tiny girl in the book is so beautiful, fun, lively and quite mischievous. As a librarian, I really was touched when Mr. Cat had a question and consulted an encyclopedia
Mr. Cat is an artist, and one day when he's outside painting, he comes across a tiny naked girl lying by a pile leaves next a green leaf. The land is cold, barren and lonely and the tiny girl with long hair is naked. Mr. Cat warms her with his fluffy paws, takes her to his home where she is clothed, fed and given her own paintbrush. Mr. Cat seems to treat her as his loving pet. One day, they venture outside in the snow where a trail of yellow flowers appear as tiny girl walks. Here is where Mr. Cat takes notes and consults the encyclopedia and learns the girl’s life span is only one winter. Cat and girl enjoy being together til one day she is just gone. It’s hard to know how Mr. Cat feels because his expression hardly changes.
At one point there a bunny appears with no apparent reason and I would like to pick the author/illustrator’s brain about that.
I think children will see this as a book of friendship and be sad at the loss of tiny girl, then hope that she’ll return next winter.
I read the book five or more times and liked it more and more with each read.
Thank you to NetGalley and Clavis for providing a digital ARC. I plan to order my own hard copy for my collection of unusual picture books. I’m happy to learn about the works of Wang Yuwei.
Rating: really liked it
Mr. Cat lives alone and is a prolific painter. Winter has come early and he decides to take his painting materials outside and capture the beauty of the fluttering snowflakes softly landing on the autumn leaves. To his surprise he discovers a green leaf and when he turns it over there is a little girl under the leaf sound asleep? How can that possibly be? He gently picks her up and brings her inside his home fearing she may freeze death if he leaves her out in the cold.
Although at first he finds his new companion annoying she wiggles into his heart and he nurtures her and loves her living there with him. What a joy she turns out to be.When he takes her outside into the snow he finds that wherever she steps yellow flowers appear. One of his plants that fell on the little girl's foot starts to grow... bigger, bigger, and Bigger! She seems to have magical powers.
The little girl begins to sleep more and more and when it gets closer to Spring she just disappears! Totally gone! I wonder what happened to her and how Mr. Cat feels now that he is alone once again?
The art work is soft and beautiful and the storyline is tender and sweet. It touches on themes of nurturing, friendship, acceptance and loss. It opens up many avenues to have conversations on these subjects. I really enjoyed this book a lot and highly recommend it.
Rating: really liked it
Born in the first snow.
Can affect the growth of plants.
Lifetime... one winter.
I used to pick stray kittens off the street in a heartbeat. And reading about a cat picking a Thumbelina-like girl off the snow was a rather surreal experience for me.
(Imagine a cat picking me up instead =^o^=
)As a pet owner, I always hope that I am giving my cats as much happiness as they are giving me. They may annoy me at times, but I can never stay angry with them. I know that our time together will not last forever, but this only makes me treasure every moment I spend with them more.
So Mr. Cat's sentiments hit me pretty deep - in every page, in every short, simple verse, and especially in every gorgeous illustration,
Mr. Cat and the little girl's friendship may have been short-lived, but I really love that there will always be hope in that one green leaf in the snow. <3
*I received a digital review copy of this book from NetGalley.
Rating: really liked it
Hmmm… A strong story that kind of leaves one with an empty feeling, when it finishes. Before then the little legend of an artistic cat and the diminutive girl he finds cold and alone outside is interesting, even if it does raise questions of where her wardrobe came from. The quality of the artwork is great, but I would have liked it to have had more uniformity – either all double-page spreads, or small images where appropriate, and not the imbalanced layout we get. I think what makes me give this three and a half stars not four is the lack of punch to the ending. Only reading the back cover do I see this described as "about friendship and saying goodbye" – well despite the reluctance Mr Cat has to have the bad news confirmed, this seemed more about the near-silent companionship the cat felt. If this is a primer for death it's not the best – but while the friendship endured this was pleasant.
