10 Cats

by Emily Gravett

Overview

Follow the lives of ten kittens as they playfully pounce, bat, and swat while their mother sleeps. Buckets of paint quickly turn the kittens—and their sleeping mother—into brilliant works of art. When mama cat wakes up, playtime turns into bath time. Full of playful and engaging art, this inventive tale creates page after page of spot-the-difference fun perfect for repeat reading. Now in new board book format!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781915801784
Publisher:	Boxer Books
Publication date:	09/03/2024
Pages:	26
Product dimensions:	8.00(w) x 8.00(h) x (d)
Age Range:	3 Months to 3 Years

About the Author

Emily Gravett is the two-time winner of the Kate Greenaway Medal for Wolves and Little Mouse's Big Book of Fears. Her internationally award-winning picture books include Meerkat Mail, Tidy, and Old Hat. She has illustrated bestselling fiction, including Matt Haig’s Evie and the Animals and a recent full-color edition of Quidditch Through the Ages.
 

Editorial Reviews

Shelf Awareness Best Book of 2023, Young Readers
A Children’s Book Council Librarian Favorite, Grades K-2

“Gravett is brilliant at using white space to paint a witty visual story. Her pencil and water color artwork is lovely and should appeal to all ages. 10 Cats is more than fun and games, too. In the process of wreaking havoc, the playful kittens help readers learn about colors, patterns, and numbers. Gravett’s cheery primary shades (which turn into secondaries as the bedlam advances) bring to mind the zany 1960 classic Put Me in the Zoo by Robert Lopshire.” —Shelf Awareness (starred review)

“[The] hunt-and-count will be an immediate joy . . . . Gravett’s deeper idea, that 10 breaks down in many ways, will lead alert readers into a discussion of how addition can separate numbers into parts.” —The New York Times

“Gravett’s cat and kittens are adorable, with wide, expressive eyes and all the moves (And toe beans) of real felines…. A delightfully messy pussycat rumpus.” —Kirkus Reviews

“Adding to already impressive preschool-concepts canon, Gravett does exceptionally well here at using delightful images and a mere handful of words to cover counting, color naming, and color mixing through a deceptively simple and utterly adorable pencil-and-watercolor story. It is perfect for a lap read or an early literacy classroom experience, and children’ with longer attention spans will almost certainly luxuriate in the detailed illustrations.” —Booklist

“Young children learning to count will delight in the growing chaos on each spread, the expressively rendered kittens, and the proliferation of bright colors at each page-turn. Gravett’s nimble linework communicates a frolicsome tone. Viewers will want to head immediately back to page one and start counting again.” —Horn Book Magazine

“Engaging and playful, this adorable book for young children is perfect for those learning to count and acknowledge colors.” —Daily Mom
 

From the Publisher

2023-02-25
What can 10 cats and three cans of paint teach us?

A white adult cat and nine kittens of various hues and stripes make up the 10 titular cats. “1 white cat.” “2 black cats.” “3 cats with stripes.” “4 cats with patches.” As the adult cat naps, the kittens play with the three cans of paint (in primary colors, of course)…and suddenly five kittens have red spots. Then six have yellow dots. Seven cats have blue blotches. As red and yellow mix, eight cats find themselves with orange patches. And when blue and yellow mix, nine cats are covered with green splotches. Finally, the adult cat awakens and decides that these “10 multicolored cats” (themself included) need baths. Everyone takes a dip in a tub and towels off. Gravett’s cat and kittens are adorable, with wide, expressive eyes and all the moves (and toe beans) of real felines. The simple text will help kids learn their colors and numbers. Each double-page spread is devoted to a different number and color (or pattern). Pet owners will easily recognize their own kitty companions in the illustrations created with pencil, watercolor, and “a smidgeon of digital fiddle-faddling.” Even those who know their numbers and colors will enjoy this tale, which serves as a fine modernization to Margaret Wise Brown’s Color Kittens (1949), illustrated by Alice and Martin Provensen. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

A delightfully messy pussycat rumpus. (Concept book. 1-5)

Kirkus Reviews