First Cat Book Review: Ginger

Greetings from Me and the Witty Kitties!

             

          I started this blog on the first day of summer and while Miss Kitty, Flowers, and I have read all but one of our library picture books about other feline friends, both fictional and real cat inspired, I have yet to write a review. Life in this cat house has been busy this past week, especially this past weekend. No matter how busy we, the people, are Flowers the cat seems to like to stop and smell her surroundings and appreciate every moment. Flowers has her own room so to speak and she loves for people to join her in her room/guest bedroom/design and art room and hang out and just focus on her or just hang out and not talk to her sometimes when she is fussy. Flowers is very people needy, but very shy to new people. She just really loves me and my mom. Miss Kitty, on the other hand, is very happy to visit with people outside while they are gardening, photographing artwork, flowers and plants, and especially her. 

        On Monday afternoon, Miss Kitty snuck out of the house when my dad left the house and  while my mom and I were coming back from being out of town in Lafayette. When we came home, I spent about an hour looking for Miss Kitty on my side of my short dead end street. I contacted one neighbor after another, knocking on doors and making phone calls, but Miss Kitty was not ready to be found. If she wanted to be found she would have voiced a bunch of short "Meows." Each neighbor had a different story to tell, and the one who I awoke to get permission to search her shed, where Miss Kitty loved to frequent a few months back, later found her coming out from behind her house on the way back from getting her mail. Silly and stubborn, and sometimes sweet Miss Kitty was probably finally ready to eat after a couple hours of exploring! It is funny how books I sometimes read remind me so much of my own life or the real world.

      The first book I am reviewing is Ginger by Charlotte Voake. Ginger is an orange striped cat who lived happily with a little girl until the girl brought home another cat to be Ginger's "friend" The new cat was not just any old or young cat, but a kitten who loved to explore everything that belonged to Ginger. Ginger eventually leaves the house. If you want to know what made Ginger leave or if Ginger comes back you will have to check the book out for yourself. The illustrations are cute and the text is large enough for beginning readers or for reading out loud to a group. I find the story of Ginger to be a book that most kids and cats alike would relate to. Personally, the kitten in the story reminds me of Flowers and the older cat Ginger reminds me of Miss Kitty. However lately, when Miss Kitty can't get what she wants, she goes to explore Flowers food and room. When Flowers appears in front of Miss Kitty, Miss Kitty hisses at Flowers. Cats behaviors sometimes remind me of kids. Any kid who has ever had a new friend, sibling, or younger relative come into his or her house to play or officially stay for what seems like "forever" will relate well to Ginger the older cat. Most people and animals don't like change and older pets sometimes feel jealous of the "new guy or gal" in town coming in and getting a lot of attention. It is always good to give each cat its own space to call their own so change is easy for both pets to adjust to each other over time. Make sure to set aside time to give more attention to the oldie but goodie cat in your life. Remember, your older cat was there and loved you first!

Here is a link to the original publisher of Ginger by Charlotte Voake:
http://www.candlewick.com/cat.asp?browse=Title&mode=book&isbn=0763607886&pix=n

In my next post, I will offer a craft or another activity to do in celebration of Ginger and her kitten friend's story.

Cat lover forever,
Alesia

P.S. This is a photo of Flowers and Miss Kitty's Christmas Day Truce. They peacefully co-mingled on the same window sill for the first time last Christmas, because as I mentioned in my first blog post, they gained a new puppy who was at that time in Miss Kitty's backyard.