The Bill the Cat Story

July 11, 2016
The heart wants what the heart wants, and in this origin story readers learn that Binkley, the human fulcrum of Breathed’s Bloom County, really wanted a cat that looks like it’s suffering from a combination of the world’s worst hangover and the world’s worst hair ball. But the newly named Bill (“it rhymed with daffodil and landfill, which somehow felt perfect”) has another interim destiny before becoming Binkley’s pet, and it’s almost Dickensian. Snatched from Binkley’s hands, Bill obliviously bounces from a role as a “North Pole sled cat” to becoming a snack for extraterrestrials—until the aliens mistake Bill for Garfield (one of Bloom County’s longest-running jokes) and deposit him back on Earth, setting in motion a reunion with Binkley. Opus, kindhearted to a fault as always, plays a small but crucial role, giving Bill a pair of smiley-face tighty whities that prove key to the happy ending. Unless readers are fanatical followers (and granted, there are plenty of those), the overall impact of this book is as ephemeral as a “Thbbft,” and mostly offers a chance to appreciate Breathed’s extravagantly rendered artwork in luscious color. Ages 4–8.

July 15, 2016
An all-new Bill the Cat origin story helps relaunch Bloom County. Eight years after Pete & Pickles (2008), Breathed's last picture book, the cartoonist returns to well-trod material in what seems to be the hope of attracting the attention of parents who grew up with his comic strip. In search of a best friend, a white boy named Binkley instantly bonds with a kitty at the Pedigree Schmedigree Animal Shelter. Unfortunately, Bill is already bound for a life as a sled cat in the snowy North Pole. From there, he wanders the globe with little logic, making his mark on the megafauna of the savanna, cat worshippers, and earthling-abducting extraterrestrials, until he is finally delivered to his waiting boy. The scene periodically shifts to a lonely Binkley and Opus the penguin. Filled with copious visual gags and an all-white cast (even, apparently, the cat worshippers that build like the Egyptians and dress in stereotypical Middle Eastern garb), the book is an extended ode to Bloom County as a "Simpler Time, Kinder Place." As a product, the book has a frantic energy that makes it a perfectly decent gift for those adults who have long missed the antics of Binkley, Opus, and the rest, but it will mean little and be of even less interest to actual child readers. As Bill the Cat would say, "Ack." (Picture book. 4-8)

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December 1, 2016

K-Gr 2-Binkley is a lonely kid who instantly falls in love with a cat; unfortunately for him, though, his pet happens to be the brainless Bill the Cat. Modern audiences might not understand that Bill the Cat and his friend Opus the Penguin come from the old comic strip Bloom County; this may alienate some, but a deep understanding of the characters isn't necessary to enjoy the story. Bill is then quickly taken away from Binkley, leaving the boy to pine for his friend while his cat goes on an epic journey. Full-page scenes depicting Bill's many adventures, from leading his cat sled team to herding a group of elephants, certainly make the book. Brightly colored and detailed and drawn in Breathed's signature style, the images will delight fans and newcomers alike. With Opus reuniting Bill with his boy, Breathed focuses on the warmth of his characters and wackiness of the tale rather than on the satire of most of his comics. VERDICT Probably more enjoyable for adults than for kids, this title is an additional purchase.-Peter Blenski, Greenfield Public Library, WI

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