Pizza Kittens

by Charlotte Voake

Lucy, Bert and Joe don't want fish-fingers for their tea - they want pizza. And they certainly don't want lettuce or peas! Mum and Dad are fed up of the mess and fuss that accompanies mealtimes. They want their kittens to sit down, eat up and behave. But however well-meaning the kittens may be, can they manage to have the perfect family meal? With characteristic energy and expression, Charlotte Voake has explored a new bold and colourful style to illustrate this funny story, portraying brilliantly the dynamics of family mealtimes with young children.

Genres: Picture Books, Food, Cats, Animals, Childrens, Family

40 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

"I don’t know that I’m a funny person," says author-illustrator Charlotte Voake. "But it seems when I begin to draw that the characters change, and they take on this amusing and amused look." Indeed, her illustrations are widely loved for this very quality of gentle wit, not to mention their quiet observation, airy exuberance, and utter charm.

Born and raised in Wales, Charlotte Voake says that book illustration is "the only thing I ever wanted to do," and she certainly has made a brilliant career of it. Skipping formal training in art, she studied art history at London University and worked at an art gallery before embarking on a freelance career in illustration. Among her most acclaimed picture books is GINGER, an American Library Association Notable Children’s Book that KIRKUS REVIEWS called a "flawless tale of two cats . . . to be read and reread." GINGER FINDS A HOME, a prequel to that award-winning picture book, shows how the loving ministrations of a little girl transformed the title character from stray to pampered pet. "We had a cat who lived at the bottom of our garden," Charlotte Voake says of her inspiration for this story. "It was a great moment when he decided to come and live with us."


Charlotte Voake was personally selected by the nephew of the esteemed children's book writer Eleanor Farjeon to illustrate the delightful classic, ELSIE PIDDOCK SKIPS IN HER SLEEP. More recently, Charlotte Voake wrote and illustrated PIZZA KITTENS, a dinnertime comedy of errors that she says stems from personal experience. "Good manners are not acquired overnight," she sighs. "The secret is to keep trying!"


Charlotte Voake lives in Surrey, England, with her husband and two children.

Reviews

[Melki · Rating 2 out of 5]

This one seems to send a strange message - that it's okay to misbehave and complain at the dinner table if your parents aren't serving any food you like. And then, the bad behavior is rewarded. Sadly, the tale isn't even redeemed by the artwork.


Not recommended.

[kim · Rating 1 out of 5]

kittens? pizza? sounds good to me. except there is absolutely nothing in the storyline that justifies the fact the characters are cats. also the story makes no sense. the kids are bratty and don't want to have healthy food for dinner. they don't listen to their parents. then the next night they get pizza and everyone is happy. that's it. seriously.

[Eva B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Objectively this is probably not the best moral for a kid’s book to have but I don’t care and I love it anyway.

[Dolly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story often feels like dinner at our house; no matter how many times we sit down and eat together as a family, there's always some crisis. Our girls either make a big mess or don't like what we've made. It gets easier as they get older, and we keep trying, but it can be pretty frustrating. This book is good for starting discussions about proper behavior at the table and for encouraging children to cooperate at dinnertime.

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute story about a family of cats sitting down for dinner. It is not about pizza like I thought it would be about. Pizza is mentioned a little bit, but it's not the focus of the book. The focus of the book is more about sitting together as a family for dinner and eating together. The illustrations are cute too.

[Raquel Pilar · Rating 2 out of 5]

A cat family keeps trying to have meals, but a mess happens every time! Even when the kittens finally have what they wanted... (There was lettuce though)
I don't get the point of this book. I was just like "?????"

[Hannah Higson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not too sure how useful in a classroom but enjoyable none the less.

[Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

A terrific book about family meals, letting go when things don’t go as hoped, and enjoying the moment together in any event. The detailed illustrations are priceless. My family found it hilarious.
CW: One of the parents closes her eyes and smiles while holding a glass of wine. While I perceived it as a funny fleeting moment, it might be troubling to anyone affected by addiction.

[Felicity Parmenter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Adorable story about chaotic dinner times that my kids enjoyed over and over again. Plenty of humor with the kitten characters and dialogue between them all.

[Jeimy · Rating 2 out of 5]

The illustrations reminded me of Quentin Blake, but the story was underwhelming.

[Elena · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favourite childhood books!!

[Brystal Angel · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was okay, didn't really give a great message in my opinion.

[Lynn Davidson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three kittens - Lucy, Joe, and Bert - were fussy eaters and didn’t want to eat much of what their parents had prepared for supper two days in a row. They made a mess even when they tried to behave. On the third day their dad made something special. Funny illustrations for this common family situation.

[Arsenio Richardson]

This was a very interesting book for me because I did not know what to think through the first couples pages but then I started to understand. I know that is rare for a children’s book but I thought it was very unique. The author used big font for the literature and lots of punctuations. The literature was average in this book but the art work was the best part. The author used cats in the family setting which is good because cats are common household pets and portrayed them on two feet instead of on all fours. I think the colors could have been better. In all, it was a good book.

[Eva-Marie Nevarez · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh... Neither one of us thought much about this. The illustration seems so-so at best and the story also. Thankfully we borrowed this from the library so we didn't spend any money on it and it's okay for a once read type of thing. Julia used this for her summer reading program so it did serve it's purpose.

[Alma Loredo · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mom and Dad cat have been trying to feed their kitten’s healthy tasty food. Unfortunately they are not so happy with the food. Every time they try to sit and eat something terrible happens to the dinner table and is always a mess. The dad tries to be encouraging but it does not always work. Mom just asks them to stay there. Lastly dad decided to make their favorite pizza and dinner went well.

[Kristen · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn't actually read this in my preschool story time as I found it way too boring to use. I could maybe see a use for this--parents who are having problems with children being a pain at dinner time--but overall it just didn't spark any interest in me.

[Holly · Rating 1 out of 5]

I love pizza and I love kittens, but this book makes me wish I'd never learned to read. Too much dialogue and an absolute lack of plot left me rage-filled and deeply unsatisfied. Nice illustrations, though.

[Olivia S · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this. It's so funny and true to life, and the kittens' dialogue is hilarious. Pizza and kittens, what more could you ask for? Kind of a bad moral of the story, but oh well. Will use for my pets storytime. 4+

[Gail · Rating 3 out of 5]

My three year old liked this. I think for the mess.

[Julia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Judging by the name, I expected the love this book! The illustrations were adorable, but I was unhappy with the abrupt ending to the story.

[Paula · Rating 2 out of 5]

The kittens make a mess of dinner unless it is pizza. the illustrations are not as easy to deciver
Kittens Lucy, Joe, and Bert prefer pizza to peas.

[Jenna · Rating 3 out of 5]

The title of the book explains it all. I felt like this story lacked the extra excitement I wish to see in children's books.

[Elaine Pelton · Rating 1 out of 5]

UNBELIEVABLY boring picture book about family dinners. The cute illustrations are completely wasted on this stupid and pointless story.

[Megan · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars. I think kids will relate to wanting to eat certain foods/not others, but the story itself is a bit weak.

[Meredith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Every dinner is a disaster with these three messy kittens.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my kids' favorites!

[Lana · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is so cute! I love the cat's legs!!!

[Elle · Rating 1 out of 5]

The kittens continue to make a mess every night at the table and they get rewarded?!? Instead of their favorite meal, their parents should have continued to serve healthy options until the kids learned how to sit at the table and eat with manners. This book unfortunately demonstrates for children that acting out is the way to behave when you don't get your way.