Paris Cat by Dianne Hofmeyr and Piet Grobler
(Tiny Owl, 2020)
Picture books these days have to be very special in order for them to stand out in a very overcrowded market. Fortunately, Tiny Owl are producing this sort of quality stuff one book after another! The latest is 'Paris Cat', an utterly winsome story of one feline who is determined to follow her musical passions and to take the world of the French capital by storm.
It's a book that demands to be read out loud, with delicious phrases throughout that chime and charm the ear:
'[...]she found a nest of silk and satin tulle and taffeta, velvet and voile and fell fast asleep. When she woke, it was to the scrimp scrimp of scissors and the whirr whirr of sewing machines.'
The scissors may 'scrimp' but the prose-poetry certainly doesn't, leading children through the joyful abundance and sonic glory of language: atelier, claw-stitched, seamstress, dressed to the nines are just a few examples that appear.
Then, of course, there's the delightful story itself: breathless in its exuberance, the tale of Kitty who leaps from one 'life' to the next - one minute a clothes designer, the next a stage performer and then...what next? - will encourage young children to follow their own dreams, to act on their passions and interests. The book will also appeal greatly to the adult reader who may be sharing the book with a child or a class: there are cameos from Edith Piaf (who has to compete with a caterwauling intruder!) and Josephine Baker (who temporarily adopts Kitty into her stage show). There are also lovely touches of sly humour: the 'Catacombs Club', the dismissive 'Pffh', 'les poissonneries'...
In addition to this delightful text are the equally stylish illustrations by Piet Grobler. The energetic collage style, with confident slicings and carefree juxtapositions, are a beautiful complement to Kitty's own nature. The monoprints add a smoky quality to the textural palette while the bright, characterful eyes that follow Kitty's progress around the city highlight the energy of the urbanscape.
Mention must also be made of the endpapers which provide us with a cat's-view-map of Paris: seemingly the great tourist hot-spots have been noted only for their usefulness in pointing the way to the nearest poissonneries - just follow the red, walking tour lines and you'll be okay, Kitty seems to be saying!
Get hold of a copy of this and I guarantee you'll 'regrette rien de rien', as the song goes (sorry - just couldn't resist!).
A set of FREE Teacher Resources is also available for this book here: ow.ly/7kSo50AXoOT #teacherresources
Illustrations are used courtesy of Tiny Owl, © 2020.
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