Review of Cathas and the Squirrel Incident

[Ivana Tomaš]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Cathas and the Squirrel Incident" by Tessa Bremner.]

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2 out of 4 stars

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Many people have pets. They are special family members for everyone who has them. They make life more beautiful and enjoyable. On the other hand, it is not rare that someone from the family does not want to adopt an animal, while other family members do. Cathas and the Squirrel Incident by Tessa Bremner is a children's book that describes one such situation.

Mr. and Mrs. Peace live a quiet life in a remote village. They are big animal lovers, especially Mrs. Peace, and they even have three dogs. However, Mrs. Peace always wanted a cat but could not have one as a child because her mother was allergic to cat hair. One day, after she learned from a conversation with a neighbor that she had adopted a kitten, Ms. Peace's desire to adopt a cat arose again. Mrs. Peace manages to persuade her husband to adopt a cat. The reader further learns how the new cat, Cathas, will fit into the new family, how he will get along with the dogs, and whether he will make any mischief.

This is a very light-hearted and playful children's book. I like that animals are at the center of the plot. Each animal has its own special and unique personality. I find it interesting that Cathas has a special Spanish accent. Also, I like the illustrations that appear on almost every page. You can see that they are authentic and that a child drew them. This fact alone gives the whole book an extra special touch.

On the other hand, I have to admit that I didn't like many factors. First of all, I think that too much text in the book is not visually well organized and coordinated with the pictorial part. Also, the story itself is not written skillfully. Much of the text comes across as rambling. The writing's style is ponderous. Sentences should have been simpler, shorter, and more concise. It is unclear to me what this story's ultimate purpose is or what the author wanted to convey to the reader.

Overall, I give this book 2 out of 4 stars. The main reason for this is that the story didn't quite impress me as I expected, and I found it a bit boring. The book has potential, and I think the author could have executed the whole story better. On the other hand, I did not encounter any objective errors in the book. If I had to recommend this book to someone, it would be children who have or want to have a pet.

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Cathas and the Squirrel Incident
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[Ivan Mukaaga]

Thanks for the honest review. The subject of pets is a good one with a universal appeal. I only wish the book didn’t have those dislikes.

[Micah_1]

Well... I'm not a lover of animal pets so I'll pass on this.

[Chiwendu Ikechukwu]

Intruiging review for a powerful book. I'm so in love with the storyline. Adding to my bookshelf ASAP