Humor Books

Before there was Monty Python, there was Myles. He was by far the crankiest, most learned and original comic genius of 20th-century English prose; there's simply nothing else like him. (Well, maybe there are 3 or 4 moments in "Duck Soup" that are like him.) And when you realize that this is the same guy who, under a different name, wrote "At Swim-Two-Birds" (one of the five or so funny novels for whose sake the Lord does not destroy the Earth)-- well, it's time to just surrender and enjoy.

Plus, the current Dalkey Archive edition (the publisher's name is itself a Myles reference) is handsomely made... good-quality paper and so on, don't you know. It makes a difference.

Mise, le mas, ....

A friend lent me his copy (an Irish edition) of this book five or more years ago, and I've been searching for my own copy ever since. I'm delighted to find it's been reprinted and I just placed my order.

I envy anyone who has not yet read this book of collected columns and essays -- the outrageous details of the Ventriloquists' War, the intricacies of the Catechism of Cliche, and the wisdom of the Brother all await your delighted discovery.

Have a blast.

Good humour is something everybody likes and I yearn for. For quite a long time I thought that there could hardly be anything better, or at least as good as Ephraim Kishon's short satires or Douglas Adams' space phantasmagories. It was hard even to imagine something like that because I was sure my stomach would disintegrate after something like that. And than I ran into Flann O'Brien's The Best of Myles. Indeed, that was the first time for me to get familiar with him and certainly the best possible. His columns are far than hillarious, obviously because he plays with things we consider as common, everyday problems, and maybe not even problems. All the wild thoughts one could get in moments of being very bored O'Brien would write down and bring to their final reductio ad absurdum. He wouldn't wait to be stopped, he would just carry on scribbling complete nonsense, dipping even into some other languages like Latin or Gaelic in a wild rage of an admirable inspiration.
Yes, one more thing that admire him for. He would deal with Gaelic and even write in it, he would mock with politics and politicians, with history and society and even so, he managed to stay completely non-political. At least he left his columns that way. The Best of Myles is best to read before his longer and more ambitious works like The Third Policeman or At Swim-Two-Birds. And also after them.

this compilation contains, without qualification, THE funniest writing of the twentieth century, so it seems churlish to list complaints. Some of these are unavoidably the nature of the material - Myles na Gopaleen wrote a regular column for an Irish newspaper for a quarter of a century, so the very local concerns discussed in some of the pieces render them impenetrable to all but Irish historians.

The biggest problem is with the editing, or lack thereof. There are no explanatory notes offering historical, social or political context; there are no translatoins of the many German, Latin, Irish etc. interpellations. One could argue that this leaves us in the same position as those first newspaper readers, but Myles' predominantly middle-class audience could boast a sound classical education and a greater familiarity with the allusions so liberally scattered here than we do today.

Finally, the decision not to print the pieces chronologically (none of them are dated), but by subject, distorts the work, handicaps its versatility and can lead to repetition and tedium.

That 'the Best of Myles' remains one of the last century's few genuinely important books is entirely due to the indestructible persona(e) of Myles himself, hypercultured, alcoholic, visionary verbal contortionist with pretensions to aristocratic heritage. His phlegmatic invective at local problems such as sewage systems and the civil service are less valuable than his assault on language as it had (has?) degenerated into cliche and received opinion in the culturally sterile Ireland of the 1940s and 50s; and in his post-modern project of demolishing hierarchies of linguistic and artistic endeavour. Reading Myles has a bracing effect - he forces you out of habitual mental laziness; forces you to think HARDER.

Flann O'Brian is absolutely one of the greatest practitioners of language. This collection of his work, "The Best Of Myles", is some of the finest writing I have ever had the pleasure to read. Gaelic, English, French, German, and Latin, are 5 languages he writes fluently. He is the personification of all that is famous of Irish Wit. There appear to be few topics he did not comment upon or release a withering appraisal with pinpoint precision.

Mr. O'Brian wrote for a daily newspaper until his death in 1966. The volume and quality of the written material he produced is amazing. This 400-page book is one of five that are available and that I intend to read. There is virtually nothing about his personal history in this volume, so hopefully there is a biography in print documenting the time he spent learning and practicing his craft. The only downside to this book is that some is in Gaelic with no translation, and there are many articles that will seem to exist in isolation if the reader does not have some knowledge of Irish History. Even if these commentaries were removed, the balance of the work would still be a remarkable literary performance.

Some of the best pieces were his comments on the affectation in so many facets of daily life. And his specific attacks on, "bores", and all the pretensions of the world of modern art, and those who would pretend to posses knowledge of which they are bereft. He creates institutes and foundations and companies dedicated to servicing frauds and exposing the truth. Much is for pure fun, but like all humor contains truth. He offers the services of a company that will come to the home of any illiterate with a library, and his people will either rummage through your books for a pittance, or for a more substantial sum, will dog-ear pages, write brilliant marginalia, and leave tickets and programs to various cultural events as though they were misplaced bookmarks. And for those who have the funds, books will receive forged inscriptions from their authors, and letters of thanks to the book's owner for their help with a particularly difficult passage.

This book came at the end of 2001 for me. I hate lists of the best of the year; however nothing I have read this year surpasses this book, absolutely nothing!

This is a delightful, body-positive and beautiful work of art. I have purchased several copies for friends of both genders, and consider it mandatory reading (and coloring). The vagina should be celebrated, and it is truly unfortunate that we reside in a world where women feel their "private parts" need reconstruction or deserve anything less than reverence. I encourage everyone to buy a book and celebrate the beauty of the female body; the mystery; the wonder; the humor... Viva La Vagina!

This book is a wonderfully whimsical bit of erotica... I got it as a birthday present for my boyfriend and it's always a bit topic of conversation when company comes over. it's now almost completely colored in!

I think this was one of the best gifts I've ever given. If you like seeing your friends and family turn red, this will surly do the trick. This book was great fun. : )

This book entered my life at a time when I was feeling more or less 'eh' about my vagina. Like, I'd wake up in the morning, first thought: 'I've got a vagina.' Next thought: 'Yeah, so?'

Not anymore. In my mind, at least, my private parts have progressed from the drab Middle Ages to a Technicolor Age of Aquarius. Let the sunshine in.

This book is FUN! Everyone I show it to loves it! Guys, girls, the whole party is standing over each others shoulders commenting, pointing, and laughing at themselves for enjoying this book so thoroughly. Even some of my kinda straight edge friends love it!

Like the first 'Zits' treasury, this book will provide you with a lot of laughs, and you will probably want to return to reread the strips again in the future. I enjoyed this book immensely and plowed right through it in two sittings, even though I had planned to stretch it out over a week.

My one quibble with the book is that several of the strips are exact duplicates of strips from the first treasury.

If you have or have had teenagers, you need to red Zits. The adventures of all the characters will keep you laughing. They even manage to capture the angst of both parents and teens.

I evaluate funnies by the drawings, and, of course, is it funny or not? With that said, here we go.

In some ways, I think this comic is influenced by Calvin and Hobbes, one of the most memorable and classic strips. This comic strip is drowned in sarcasm and irony. The drawings have a sort of sketchy quality about them, something that makes them loose and very cool-looking. They have shading and scribbly detail, but are still very clear and easy to understand.

It has more than 4 characters, allowing the cartoonist to come up with many interesting character traits. Exploring these personalities is very fun to read. A boy and a girl never seen not hugging each other, a mom, a dad, a big brother, and a boy with a guitar are just some of the characters. I think this strip has about the right amount of characters.

This book is my first encounter with the comic and it is very appealing. I won't tell you to buy it, because I'm not a salesperson. I'm merely telling you why I like it.

In Big Honkin Zits (hey, it's named after ME when I was 16..or 26) you can clearly see WHY this strip by Jerry Scott and Jim Borgman is one of the fastest growing and most popular strips EVER.

The best way to explain it is: it's on the same quality level as Bill Watterson's Calvin & Hobbes at it's funniest, most irony-laced and visually comedic BEST. Once again we have Jeremy...the self-absorbed 15-year-old who is constantly (in his view) humiliated by his parents' mere existance (except when he lowers the posture and briefly show he really cares). The strip shows things from the adult point of view but ALSO does a good job of pointing out how a teen might view the parents (his parents ARE dorky).

There are several reasons why this strip is such great COMEDY, and holds up so well in a treasury form such as this. The artists use a story-line of sorts (akin to the story-line Watterson would use where a given daily strip would stand alone but is part of a group with a theme). The shorter strips work as well as the longer ones. As in Calvin & Hobbes we often see things from the teen or parental view in the form of a fantasy (his father dressed like a clown; Jeremy with huge ears after his girlfriend mentions his ears are big).It's a strip that shows character evolution: his girlfriend finally gets her braces off; he goes to his first real rock concert; sneaks into his first teen porn film etc.

But above all it's the world-class visual comedy, character facial expressions and actual irony-heavy comedy that makes this strip among the best EVER. Since there are tons of strips I'll share one that is my favorite. Jeremy's mother reads an article that says "the average teenage boy thinks about sex once every eight minutes." They look at each other and each says "Wow." She thinks: "That much?" He thinks: "That's all?"

You're going to want to read Big Honkin' Zits again and again and each time you're going to laugh as much as the first time. SUPERB selection of a SUPERB strip that happily continues to quickly grow in circulation, artistically and comedically.

Jeremy returns in his second treasury, combining strips from the books "Don't Roll Your Eyes at Me, Young Man!" and "Are We an Us?" Not much has changed since the first treasury. He still wishes his parents would get off his back, he still doesn't understand women, and he still dreams of making it big in music. But whether he's trying to decide what to do about the upcoming Gingivitis concert, win back Sara from a sophomore, support a friend's mom who has cancer, or sneak over to his girlfriend's babysitting job, he's sure to find the humor in any situation.

Unfortunately, I don't get the strip in my local paper, so I have to wait for these books to enjoy it. But I can certainly see why it has become such a popular strip. Everyone can appreciate the humor in the storylines, which poke fun at everyone equally. The visual gages are some of the best in the papers today and make for some of the best strips in the book as well. And it's easy to like these characters because they really do have good hearts just beneath the surface. My only complaint with this book is that the strips don't appear to be in order. It makes for a little confusion when a character is first introduced after we've already met him or her, but over all, it really is minor.

This is a wonderful collection that should win new fans and satisfy the old. Buy it today and enjoy the laughs.

This story combines all the right elements: a loving grandmother, brave and adventurous young boy, thoroughly bad badguys (with names like Earpicker and Pointy), and off-the-wall fantasy.

Billy became an orphan when his scientist mother vanished on an excavation - an excavation into a bottomless chasm in the basement of their row house. He lives happily with his grandmother, despite her increasingly odd decisions. Tennis balls in the spaghetti sauce are the least of it (you eat around them). Then one day, a mysterious letter calls her away from their shuttered isolation, and she is reported dead of an accident too strange to be believed. Unpleasant strangers take Billy away, but he is determined to return and discover the truth ...

If you can take some over-the-top goofiness and a predictably happy ending (not everyone can), a kid of the right age could find some fun in this one.

-- wiredweird, reviewing a complimentary copy

It's silly and it's funny
And it's crazy and it's wild
It's Roald Dahl and Burton
And some Snicket for your child

[You see]

Billy's lost his mother down
A long dark scary shaft
He's living with his Granny
Whom folks think is rather daft

She's welded shut the basement
And no visitors make calls
They dump their trash by slingshot
And make sauce with tennis balls

[Because]

The shaft is in their basement
And is lined with ancient bones
You cannot hear the bottom
If you drop a hundred stones

And in the depths lurk creatures
And they leave three-footed tracks
They eat humans for breakfast
Or at least for juicy snacks

[And worse]

There is a nasty plot afoot
To take away their house
His Granny gets into a jam
Planned by an evil louse

There's only one thing to be done
By Billy on his own
Down the shaft the young boy goes
And faces the unknown

[in closing]

Like Dahl and Burton - Snicket too
Some parts are very dark
So if a child is sensitive
Do not let them embark

The plot wraps up a tad too fast
But nobody will care
Half the fun's not how it ends
It's how it gets you there

[PS]

I like the style of B.B. Wurge
I think I'd even buy more
And even though he's older now
I'd still cast Freddie Highmore


Recommended for ages 9 and up



Amanda Richards, September 16, 2008

If you were to read a one-paragraph synopsis of this story, you would most likely consider it horrendous. A young boy lives alone with his maternal grandmother after his mother and father depart in separate instances. His grandmother barricades the two of them in their house in New York City and tells him a tale of a large and extremely deep cave under their house. Three-legged frogs that kill and eat humans supposedly inhabit the cave, so they must keep everything out of the house in order to protect themselves. The grandmother cites as evidence one day she walked by a park bench where people were sitting and when she went back they were gone. She claims that they were eaten by the birdfrogs. She also claims that city officials are corrupt and are determined to steal their house.
Sound hokey, nonsensical and a bit disturbing? Well nothing is as it seems to be. Wurge takes these premises and spins a simple tale of adventure, courage and redemption as Billy takes it upon himself to explore the cave and learn the truth about all that has happened.
After representatives of the city tell Billy that his grandmother was run over by a steamroller and killed, he is placed in foster care in a house just down the street from where he lived. This allows him to engage in some breaking-and-entering into his old house and his courage and perseverance pay off into a happy ending.
Many of the best children's stories start with an apparently absurd premise and handle it so well that you ignore the absurdity. This is such a book.

I read the first chapter late one night, and found myself reaching for the book the next morning to pack in my beach bag. I must wonder what the people around me at the beach thought about me, laughing and snickering out loud at what I was reading, but I just couldn't help myself. Billy and the Birdfrogs is at times charming, delightful, silly and goofy, with an engaging plot line and enough interesting characters to populate any good children's book. I've recommended it to all my friends, especially those with kids in the 6-10 yr old range! I expect to see this one in school libraries before long! What fun!!!

Written by Billy some time after the adventure he recounts, this is a thrilling story about a boy looking for answers - about his crazy-haired grandma, his sandwich-loving mother and some curious footprints in the basement of his brownstone. Even more wonderful than the suspenseful narrative, however, was the peculiar perspective Billy afforded as a narrator. Having spent much of his life shut inside his apartment, Billy doesn't look at things like other kids do and his way of navigating through the world is at once absurd and technical. Billy doesn't seem to realize that most people don't put tennis balls in their pasta sauce or play with canned goods for exercise. When tragedy strikes and a host of Dickensian characters invade his world with their pointy fingers and ear picking habits, Billy is forced to confront his own life as if from the outside and these moments of doubt are among the most compelling moments in the book. Armed with a potato peeler and a plastic duck, Billy sets out to explore the recesses of his basement and prove - to the outside world as well as himself - the dangers around which he has shaped his life.

If you remember the eighties, this book, the first collection from the "Bloom County" syndicated comic strip will be hysterically funny. If you do not remember the eighties, then it will just be funny. I remember the eighties and I laughed when I read these cartoons the first time and I laughed when I read them again. No one captured the moods, social movements and absurdity of their combination as well as Breathed did. His exaggerated characters and references to the anxieties of the moment were a dose of reality encased in the fiction of a cartoon strip. I never missed it and neither should you.

It is very hard not to a like a cute talking penguin, and Breathed presumably realised this when coming up with Opus. The human characters that surround the odd animal are supposed to come off somewhat loopier. This is a fun look at the period and the politics, and highly entertaining. Aack!

This is the first collection of Bloom County cartoons and a great place to start enjoying the fun. Bloom County is a fictional place populated with as eclectic a group of characters as you will find anywhere. Eccentric humans, a talking penguin, and Bill the Cat take on the societal follies of the early eighties with a humorous point of view.
See the Rolling Stones perform for an elementary school dance. Go back to a time when Three Mile Island was in the news and Princess Diana was expecting her first child. Even if the events are distant memories, the humor is timeless.

Bloom County had something special, more than just the jokes. As you read the strip, you cannot help but get involved with the characters.

Bloom County fans don't just laugh at the jokes, they care about Opus and the rest. Even Steve Dallas, the ruthless but inept lawyer, wins sympathy.

The humour tends to the wit and satire end of the cartoon spectrum with only occasional bursts of slapstick. The satire is aimed mainly at lifestyles and steroetypes rather than current events which makes it still sharp as it ages.

It is a very male-centric book. Female characters are introduced in order to give the main players a romantic interlude or to prop up some situation.

Bloom County was one of the best cartoons of its time and Loose Tails is a real gem.

Here you will find the beginning of one of the most inspired comic strips ever put to paper. No other strip made me laugh as hard, or as often, as "Bloom County". In fact, pretty much nothing else in the whole wide world made me laugh as hard as this divine creation of Mr. Berke Breathed. Here we are introduced to the Milo Bloom, Steve Dallas, Cutter John and by far the best-known comic Penguin ever - Opus.

Here we can see that Bloom County was just crackling with creativity and a real desire to "cut loose" from the beginning. Some of the strips covered "current events" and were topical, meaning circa 1980, but if you were around for any of that time it's a nostalgic trip back to the days of Boy George and when Ozzy Osbourne was best known as a singer. But the vast majority of the strips ring very true today as they deal with the absurdities of the human animal.

A word about the format: Bloom County in it's original form included both the standard "3 panel" strips that appear in your every day newspaper in black and white, plus a larger full page color version for the Sunday paper. The other Bloom County volumes (as well as Bloom's sequel "Outland") were in a larger physical book form. (Similar to what you may have seen if you're a collector of, say, Calvin and Hobbes, or Dilbert). This first volume is a smaller book (similar in format to the endless volumes of Garfield which became available). But this is where it all began, and it includes much of the "best stuff".

If you want to know what America was laughing at in 1980, this is it. But you know what? I reread these strips every so often, and they STILL make me laugh that loud, roll on the floor, tears streaming down my face, people coming into the room to see WHAT are you laughing at kind of laugh. We don't get that kind of laugh often enough. Thank you, Mr. Breathed.

This book is the coolest thing since sliced bread.

I just love the laid-back style of humour that the authors use, especially in their choice of highly colorful words for the definitions.

Clever and charming, this little book is a must stocking stuffer for your literate friend or relative. I hope they come out with a sequel!

The premise of this book is the following:

Step 1: Make up tons of portmanteaux.
Step 2: ???
Step 3: Comedy gold!

I don't know about anyone else, but this seems a weak foundation, and I did not find the execution particularly amusing.

On the other hand, I adore the design and typography. That alone yields three stars, because I am an obsessive æsthete.

Not expecting much, I picked up this little book while waiting in line at my local Barnes & Noble. By the time I reached the cashier I was laughing so hard I had to step aside to catch my breath. Afterward I bought 10 copies to give to my friends and co-workers, who found the book as clever as I did. Even the drawings are great!

This book is a gem, to be treasured and re-read for years.

Like a bowl of Hershey's kisses, this sweet little book delights with clever verbal bonbons. And they're not fattening.

Joel Fried openly shares his humanness with us in this very funny book. He successfully uses humor as the lens to soften and lighten some of the memories and to sharpen what is hysterical in life. Joel writes the kind of stuff that most of us have go through our minds, if we are at all honest with ourselves. And, Joel has the gift of humor, that really makes you laugh out loud. With his poetry he shares his thoughts and feelings in a very real way, letting the reader in on the workings of his amazing mind. This book is definitely a book you can read again and again, and love it every time.

Who ever knew that so many things we secretly may notice about our everday lives could be so hysterical! Thanks to "Bursts," and Joel's
laugh out loud take on all he observes, we can feel comfort with the quirky behaviors and things that happen every day and begin to share those feelings!
The poems included at the end are succinct & moving, showing the author's serious and sincere side, so often not available to witness of the comedian.
There is truly something for everyone in this extremely funny, read and
re-read read!

This book is a delightful rambling on the vagaries of middle age. From vanity issues of nose hair, thinning hair, and waning muscle tone to the challenges of relationships with children and spouses, the author bravely gives voice to that which makes us human. The frustrations and absurdities of modern day life are examined with an honesty that is touching. I loved the book and would imagine that anyone who doesn't love it, just takes life and themselves much to seriously.

It's not very often we read something that makes us burst out loud laughing, but it sure is great when we do! And I literally guffawed more than a few times while reading Joel Fried's hysterical collection of humorous ruminations. The very short reflections appropriately described as "bursts" are just that: little explosions from a mind that clearly sees the funny side of life, even in its most mundane moments. Fried writes about everyday situations and makes us realize just how ridiculous such familiar scenarios truly are. You can't help but laugh when reading Bursts.

I LOVED THE BOOK! After reading these intensely funny yet highly personal short stories you'll agree that this is a must read for everyone who loves to laugh.

This is my favorite book of all time because it has a great amount of adventure and laughs. Marco and Polo are so cute and since I am a cat lover that gave me a plus in rating this book 5 stars.

The things I like about Carlotta`s Kittens are that it has passion, drama and the kittens are so cute you're going to love it. I think that Carlotta`s Kittens is for all ages especially grades 2 through 5. The things I dislike about the book is the cat named Steak Knife. I did not like him because he was going to chew off one of the character's (Catnip`s) tail. The other thing is I don't know why I didn't mention this before but he has a tail collection! The two things about Carlotta`s Kittens is 1:The Neal Family adopted Jumper and Spinner.2:I also enjoyed when Carlotta said, "You may be big and you may be strong but you've all got the brains of a banana!"

Carlottas kittens are here! 5 little adorable kittens! When they come to the club of mysteries the he casts know there is going to be trouble. Like they could get eaten up by this do bertrem the bad. Od steak knife a cat who collects tails from his victims. And worst of all Carlotta's Owner who will take them to the pound if he finds them. They msut find a home and fast before it's to late.

There are more books in this trilogy. If you have ever read or seen shiloh this is by the author. If you like long hard books you will still like this.

Carlotta's Kittens is an awesome book! It's exciting, adventurous, and hilarious! I rented it from the library and once I started reading the first and second chapters, I started loving it! I haven't read the first two books of the "Club Of Mysteries" series, but I still think it is one of the greatest books I've ever read! My favorite characters are Carlotta, Polo, Catnip, and Elvis. I loved all the characters, actually...but anyways, why don't YOU read it? I think you'll love it too!

Carlotta's Kittens by Phyllis Reynolds Nichols

Read this book. It's a mystery about cats and kittens and tails. This book is about a girl cat who has kittens and her friends from the alley. When she got back with her kittens her friends taught the kittens to do cat stuff, until one of the kittens got kidnapped by a one-eye cat. And some of Carlotta's friends go rescue the kitten by tricking the one eye cat.

I liked this book because it was funny. This book kept making me laugh. When I was reading this book it reminded me of a cat that fell off a tree and landed in my dad's arms.

I think the author wrote this book so that kids should find baby animals a home so they could know some animals are in danger.

I am from England and have bought all of Deric Longden's books there. I am surpries to find that they are all out of print here - he has an amazing way with words that left me laughing out loud. The tale of a small white kitten called Thermal (for reasons which I will not go into here) is one that as well being incredibly funny also has moments of sadness init as well. The books "Diana's story" and "Lost for words" are also not to be missed, although I can guarentee tears as well as laughter with these books.

American readers who enjoy authors such as Cleveland Armory are really deprived of the British author Derick Longden's classics. "The Cat Who Came In From the Cold" was the first of his books I read, but was able to read more only because I have a friend who orders them from the UK. Longden imparts personality and (imagined) dialogues and thoughts from his cats, which will have you chuckling and nodding in agreement with his knowledge of our feline favorites. GET HIS BOOKS!

I listened to this book on audio cassette while I cleaned my barn. It was so much fun to listen to, I cleaned more and more each day because I didn't want to turn off the tape. My barn is now immaculate, and I was sorry to come to the end of the story!

I first picked up the audio version of "The Cat Who Came in From the Cold" from our library while preparing for a marathon car trip with my husband (not a man who thinks highly of cats) and sons (ages 23, 20 and 14). I was pretty skeptical that the male majority would really 'let' me listen to a book with a cute little kitten on the cover, but I added it to my stack anyway (it's good to be Queen!). After having had my fill of "Tom Clancy" and his friends, I plugged in "The Cat Who Came in From the Cold" and soon ALL of us were all laughing the miles away. On our return leg of our trip, all these big guys (and their mom AND DAD) wanted to hear the "Thermal" tapes again (listening to a story a second time through is unheard of around here!) Along with most of Deric Longden's other books, we now own our own set of tapes to share with family, and the book version (which my 14 year old son, who hates to read, read cover to cover in about a day). Cheeky Thermal is an oft quoted cat around here. It is also nice to find a book that appeals to everyone in the family without any objectionable material. This is just great, light-hearted fare.

Having read Deric Longden's first five books (the others include Diana's Story, Lost For Words, I'm a Stranger Here Myself & Enough to Make a Cat Laugh), I can confidentally say that this is when the author is at his best. He delivers enough comedy (something to be expanded upon in subsequent books), but mixed with a subtle version of his own blend of tragedy (already established in previous books). Whilst many thought that his characterization of his mother's mental decline in Lost For Words was distasteful, I would think that even the harshest of critics would fail not to find the story of a lost kitten a least a little endearing.

Although it may be easy enough to dismiss this as simply a children's novel, I would say that, given enough suspension of disbelief & a little imagination, this can be a thoroughly enjoying read, and (cliche) a book that you will want to keep coming back to, time & again, even if only for some of the amusing anecdottes presented by Thermal.

This book is so catchy we borrowed this from our local library cause my daughter is just crazy for cats and so is Mrs. Brown! Her house is simply overflowing with cats in all shapes and sizes and she wouldn't want it any other way shes got cats purling in the parlor and cats cooking in the kitchen and shes more than happy to clean up after them even if the neighbors say shes batty Mrs. Brown just thinks shes catty!
Great Play on words! And definitely more entertaining than "Pigs, Pigs, Pigs".

This book was given to me by my niece who knows what a cat lover I am. Being an artist and illustrator myself, I am very critical of art work...especially of portrayal of cats. It is a BEAUTIFULLY illustrated and charming book. I have given this book to other cat lovers.

This is a great story for a wide age range--purchased for my Granddaughter's 3rd birthday--the illustrations are so much fun

We were given this book as a gift for my daughters second birthday and she absolutely loves it. It is requested at least once a day. I will definitely check out the others (Dogs... and Pigs) for ourselves and as gifts too!

I thought this was a book about the Broadway play 'CATS' anyway it was a great read, and it has good pictures. Buy it!