Review of Cat Detectives in the Korean Peninsula
Posted: 06 Oct 2022, 17:09
[Following is a volunteer review of "Cat Detectives in the Korean Peninsula" by R.F. Kristi.]
The world needs a happy coexistence of humans with animals. For the all-round development of an individual, it is necessary that humans learn to respect animals and take care of them. To inculcate these habits, it is becoming increasingly necessary to start off from the grassroots. Therefore, this education should start right from childhood onwards to help with healthy mental and inclusive growth. Thus, children's books play a great role in entertaining along with educating children. Keeping these things in mind, the illustrated children’s book Cat Detectives in the Korean Peninsula by R.F. Kristi is a great endeavor by the author. This is a wonderful children’s book filled with pretty illustrations and captivating large text. It revolves around the protagonist, who is a cat, and manages to bring together themes of friendship, bravery, human-animal connection, and the importance of families.
Inca, the main protagonist, is a detective Siberian kitty who runs a detective agency along with her other feline friends. She stays with her mother, who is a human. The protagonist undergoes various adventures with the help of her detective agency and loves travelling. This story unfolds with Inca’s mother, Missy, getting an opportunity to go to South Korea as a judge in a culinary chef competition. There, they meet their Korean guide, Ye-Jun, who has separated from his sister due to the North-South divide of Korea. The cats also need to ward off a greedy rival of theirs who has evil intentions for her endeavors and keeps plotting against her. They also need to protect a special cheese formulation that belongs to their mother and is intrinsic to her participation as a guide. The story weaves a gripping adventure with twists and turns. Will the feline team be able to unite Ye-Jun with his sister? Will they be able to protect their mother from the evil intentions of their chef rival? The answer lies in this short yet unique tale.
Coming to the positives about this book, the author has weaved an exciting tale with a cat as the protagonist. The book is written in the form of diary entries and is vividly illustrated, which captures the attention of the readers easily. The font is large and the writing is extremely simple, suitable for kids. The author provides important lessons on family values, friendship, bravery, and wisdom through this book. The author also tries to educate children on the importance of animals and pets in life and tries to create empathy by using animal characters as the main characters in this tale of humans and animals. The author also simplistically yet effectively discusses the political scenario in Korea, the regional divide, and the problems arising out of it. The elements are discussed vividly, giving a visual appeal to the book.
There are hardly any negatives in this book. The story might seem redundant at times, and there are instances where it becomes predictable and the writing becomes verbose. Other than these minor issues, there was hardly anything to dislike.
My favourite part of this book was the quest and the witty ideas suggested by the protagonist during their expedition towards North Korea in order to bring back the cat of the sister of Ye-Jun and plan innovative ways to reunite the brother and sister. It tugs at the emotional cords of the heart and is endearing to read.
From a technical standpoint, it was professionally edited since there were minor grammatical errors in punctuation and misspelt words, but considering it’s a children’s book, it did not impede my reading. Thus, considering all the facts, I would rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. It is extremely suitable for children as an engaging suspense tale. It can also be enjoyed by young adults and adults who want to revisit their simple childhood days by reading this book full of positivity and innocence.
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Cat Detectives in the Korean Peninsula
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
The world needs a happy coexistence of humans with animals. For the all-round development of an individual, it is necessary that humans learn to respect animals and take care of them. To inculcate these habits, it is becoming increasingly necessary to start off from the grassroots. Therefore, this education should start right from childhood onwards to help with healthy mental and inclusive growth. Thus, children's books play a great role in entertaining along with educating children. Keeping these things in mind, the illustrated children’s book Cat Detectives in the Korean Peninsula by R.F. Kristi is a great endeavor by the author. This is a wonderful children’s book filled with pretty illustrations and captivating large text. It revolves around the protagonist, who is a cat, and manages to bring together themes of friendship, bravery, human-animal connection, and the importance of families.
Inca, the main protagonist, is a detective Siberian kitty who runs a detective agency along with her other feline friends. She stays with her mother, who is a human. The protagonist undergoes various adventures with the help of her detective agency and loves travelling. This story unfolds with Inca’s mother, Missy, getting an opportunity to go to South Korea as a judge in a culinary chef competition. There, they meet their Korean guide, Ye-Jun, who has separated from his sister due to the North-South divide of Korea. The cats also need to ward off a greedy rival of theirs who has evil intentions for her endeavors and keeps plotting against her. They also need to protect a special cheese formulation that belongs to their mother and is intrinsic to her participation as a guide. The story weaves a gripping adventure with twists and turns. Will the feline team be able to unite Ye-Jun with his sister? Will they be able to protect their mother from the evil intentions of their chef rival? The answer lies in this short yet unique tale.
Coming to the positives about this book, the author has weaved an exciting tale with a cat as the protagonist. The book is written in the form of diary entries and is vividly illustrated, which captures the attention of the readers easily. The font is large and the writing is extremely simple, suitable for kids. The author provides important lessons on family values, friendship, bravery, and wisdom through this book. The author also tries to educate children on the importance of animals and pets in life and tries to create empathy by using animal characters as the main characters in this tale of humans and animals. The author also simplistically yet effectively discusses the political scenario in Korea, the regional divide, and the problems arising out of it. The elements are discussed vividly, giving a visual appeal to the book.
There are hardly any negatives in this book. The story might seem redundant at times, and there are instances where it becomes predictable and the writing becomes verbose. Other than these minor issues, there was hardly anything to dislike.
My favourite part of this book was the quest and the witty ideas suggested by the protagonist during their expedition towards North Korea in order to bring back the cat of the sister of Ye-Jun and plan innovative ways to reunite the brother and sister. It tugs at the emotional cords of the heart and is endearing to read.
From a technical standpoint, it was professionally edited since there were minor grammatical errors in punctuation and misspelt words, but considering it’s a children’s book, it did not impede my reading. Thus, considering all the facts, I would rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. It is extremely suitable for children as an engaging suspense tale. It can also be enjoyed by young adults and adults who want to revisit their simple childhood days by reading this book full of positivity and innocence.
******
Cat Detectives in the Korean Peninsula
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon