My Lazy Cat

September 1, 2017
Fat cat Boomer shows the way to a perfect day. "This is Boomer. / Mom found him on our front porch one day, / fast asleep and spread out like a pancake." When Boomer, who looks like a fuzzy brown pear with short, stubby legs, is brought inside, he wastes no time in becoming the young, white narrator's best friend. He has fantastic purrs and gives "the best hugs," but he's also "a slug, / a sloth, / a slacker." The narrator, on the other hand, keeps busy with judo, swimming, yoga, painting, pottery, knitting, soccer, and baking...until on the way out the door, Boomer snoozing on the carpet occasions a mammoth fall. Things go flying all over the room. Tears threaten, but they become laughter, and then Boomer shows the narrator his day: lounging on the grass under a pine tree, watching fish and frogs in the pond, eating tomatoes and berries in the garden, and napping under the cherry tree. When Mom and Dad ask what she did all day, the answer is a simple "Nothing." But the narrator's smile says it was a perfect day. French author/illustrator Roussey, co-creator of the Growing Hearts series with Jo Witek (In My Room, 2017, etc.), presents a portrait of a friendship and a celebration of slowing down. Her goofy, bright illustrations are childlike in their simplicity but full of details to search through during a quiet read. A fine and restful "nothing." (Picture book. 2-7)

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September 18, 2017
A girl realizes that her “slacker” of a cat might be on to something in a story aimed at overscheduled children and the adults in charge of those schedules. Roussey’s scrawly, scribbly lines show a girl in red boots with a mass of dark hair. Her cat, Boomer, is the size of an armchair: “He gives the best hugs.” But she’s a busy child—“I have judo, swimming, yoga, painting, and pottery. Knitting, soccer, and biking with my friends”—and lazy Boomer sometimes gets in her way when she’s in a hurry: “Boomer is lying on my art project!” But in the story’s quiet second half, Boomer “wants to show me something.” Sometimes, the cat’s lazy saunter into the garden suggests, it’s better to do nothing. “We plop down in the grass and look at ladybugs.” A backyard pine tree teems with animals—a squirrel, a bat, two birds exchanging sweet nothings. Cat and girl look in the pond, eat berries, and doze. The story’s slowing pace and emphasis on observation remind children (and their parents) that relaxing means letting go to watch and listen. Ages 3–6.

November 1, 2017

PreS-Gr 2-Boomer is a large lazy stray taken in by a little girl with a lot of energy. While she's off at judo, swimming, soccer, and other activities, Boomer sleeps on and on. Then one day, the little girl spends some time with Boomer exploring the backyard, observing the world, and even enjoying a cat nap. When her parents ask her what she's done all day she smiles and replies "Nothing." This story is a bit of a disappointment. While the illustrations are a delight, the text falls flat structurally. The story relies heavily on alteration, but the formatting appears in parts as though it should rhyme or certainly have more rhythm than it does. While not necessarily hard to read aloud, it could provide a few stumbles, which might be the result of translation from its original French. The child's overscheduled life should be more of a cautionary tale for grown-ups than a lesson for the target audience. VERDICT Adorable illustrations cannot save this clunky translation.-Shana Morales, Windsor Public Library, CT

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