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Shy Cat and the Stuff-the-Bus Challenge
"This is the story of everything that happened after my friend Kit had a meltdown at school.”
Best friends Mila and Kit spend their days doing fun they go to the skate park, play Truth or Dare, and pet the neighborhood cats. Mila’s favorite thing to do is draw her Shy Cat comics. But Kit’s is probably eating afternoon snacks. The first time Kit went to Mila’s house, he ate three bananas in a row without asking! Mila thinks rude is rude, but her mom says that sometimes, rude is just hungry.
When Kit has a meltdown at school over a “best before” date, a bag of apples, and a dented can―Mila realizes there’s something important she might have missed about her friend. And it all starts with their school’s Stuff-the-Bus food drive challenge.
Best friends Mila and Kit spend their days doing fun they go to the skate park, play Truth or Dare, and pet the neighborhood cats. Mila’s favorite thing to do is draw her Shy Cat comics. But Kit’s is probably eating afternoon snacks. The first time Kit went to Mila’s house, he ate three bananas in a row without asking! Mila thinks rude is rude, but her mom says that sometimes, rude is just hungry.
When Kit has a meltdown at school over a “best before” date, a bag of apples, and a dented can―Mila realizes there’s something important she might have missed about her friend. And it all starts with their school’s Stuff-the-Bus food drive challenge.
208 pages, Paperback
Published March 3, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
November 4, 2025
This is the first book I have read that includes food insecurity. The authors are part of the Hungry Stories Team, a collective of academics who generate and share evidence about food insecurity and advocate for political change in many creative ways. This book, Shy Cat and the Stuff-the-Bus Challenge, is a great way to increase awareness of families struggling with food insecurity and generate empathy.
Overall, it was an enjoyable graphic novel. But, to meet their goal of raising awareness of food insecurity, some of the issues could have been addressed more directly. (Such as the dented can and expiration dates and why that made Kit upset, why Mila was worried about the food pantry being closed, etc) There were quite a few things the reader was left to infer, and the mom said things were complicated, that Mila should talk to Kit about it- but she never really did, which leaves Mila and the reader hanging for information.
I read an Advanced Readers Copy courtesy of the publisher via Edelweiss. Publication date: March 2026.
Overall, it was an enjoyable graphic novel. But, to meet their goal of raising awareness of food insecurity, some of the issues could have been addressed more directly. (Such as the dented can and expiration dates and why that made Kit upset, why Mila was worried about the food pantry being closed, etc) There were quite a few things the reader was left to infer, and the mom said things were complicated, that Mila should talk to Kit about it- but she never really did, which leaves Mila and the reader hanging for information.
I read an Advanced Readers Copy courtesy of the publisher via Edelweiss. Publication date: March 2026.
March 24, 2026
with colors by Jessie Zheng.
So every once in a while, I wade through the cesspool formerly known as Twitter (bear with me, I swear this is going somewhere relevant) to peek at sports banter and celebrity gossip. Occasionally, posts on other topics will cross my feed, usually the fascist-coded, algorithm-pushed bullshit that reminds me why I only use the site for research instead of community nowadays. The most recent thread to enrage me made the absolutely baseless assertion that kids only go hungry because irresponsible parents don't bother feeding them enough, and that food insecurity is primarily a neurosis.
That kind of nonsense only underscores how important it is for books like Shy Cat And The Stuff-The-Bus Challenge to exist. Dian Day and Amanda White are both members of the Hungry Stories team, which works to highlight food insecurity in North America in creative ways, as a means of advocating for change. This first Shy Cat graphic novel is a terrific way of doing so, as young Mila learns about this complicated issue and, perhaps just as importantly, how to talk about it with the people around her.
Mila lives with her Mom in a two-storey house subdivided into apartments. Mary Elizabeth Bernadette lives downstairs, and a stray cat occasionally makes a nuisance of itself outside. Mila doesn't mind tho: she loves cats and, with her best friend Kit, visits all the ones in the neighborhood as often as she can.
Kit loves coming over to Mila's. His mom works long hours, so he often comes to play and have a snack at Mila's place after school. At first, Mila was taken aback when Kit scarfed down a whole bunch of bananas, his favorite fruit, without asking. Her mom, however, took note and offered him more food, then talked to Mila about hunger after he'd gone home. Mila began to understand some of her friend's seeming quirks better, but still had lots of questions that her mom -- and eventually her Mama, who lives elsewhere -- had to think pretty hard about answering.
Aside from hanging out with Kit, Mila's favorite thing in the world to do is to draw comics revolving around Shy Cat, a superpowered kitty who often tackles the problems that Mila herself sees around her. So when her middle school has a food drive and Kit has a meltdown related to some of the donated food, will Shy Cat (and her mothers) be able to help her work through these events with compassion, curiosity and understanding?
There's a bit of meandering and a bit of metaphor in this first person narrative, but that only lends itself to the verisimilitude of the story, as a young girl tackles the question of unfairness for pretty much the first time in her life. Her mothers are great at helping her figure it out, and the cat analogies only further underscore the issue for readers who might be fortunate enough never to have encountered hunger in their peers, much less to have experienced it for themselves.
The art is cartoony and cute, and Tia is a character who consistently steals every scene she's in. The commitment to diversity throughout is outstanding. This is a book that deserves to be in every children's library, almost as much as food deserves to be in every kid's pantry.
Shy Cat And The Stuff-The-Bus Challenge by Dian Day & Amanda White was published March 3 2026 by Second Story Press and is available from all good booksellers, including Bookshop!
This review originally appeared at TheFrumiousConsortium.net.
So every once in a while, I wade through the cesspool formerly known as Twitter (bear with me, I swear this is going somewhere relevant) to peek at sports banter and celebrity gossip. Occasionally, posts on other topics will cross my feed, usually the fascist-coded, algorithm-pushed bullshit that reminds me why I only use the site for research instead of community nowadays. The most recent thread to enrage me made the absolutely baseless assertion that kids only go hungry because irresponsible parents don't bother feeding them enough, and that food insecurity is primarily a neurosis.
That kind of nonsense only underscores how important it is for books like Shy Cat And The Stuff-The-Bus Challenge to exist. Dian Day and Amanda White are both members of the Hungry Stories team, which works to highlight food insecurity in North America in creative ways, as a means of advocating for change. This first Shy Cat graphic novel is a terrific way of doing so, as young Mila learns about this complicated issue and, perhaps just as importantly, how to talk about it with the people around her.
Mila lives with her Mom in a two-storey house subdivided into apartments. Mary Elizabeth Bernadette lives downstairs, and a stray cat occasionally makes a nuisance of itself outside. Mila doesn't mind tho: she loves cats and, with her best friend Kit, visits all the ones in the neighborhood as often as she can.
Kit loves coming over to Mila's. His mom works long hours, so he often comes to play and have a snack at Mila's place after school. At first, Mila was taken aback when Kit scarfed down a whole bunch of bananas, his favorite fruit, without asking. Her mom, however, took note and offered him more food, then talked to Mila about hunger after he'd gone home. Mila began to understand some of her friend's seeming quirks better, but still had lots of questions that her mom -- and eventually her Mama, who lives elsewhere -- had to think pretty hard about answering.
Aside from hanging out with Kit, Mila's favorite thing in the world to do is to draw comics revolving around Shy Cat, a superpowered kitty who often tackles the problems that Mila herself sees around her. So when her middle school has a food drive and Kit has a meltdown related to some of the donated food, will Shy Cat (and her mothers) be able to help her work through these events with compassion, curiosity and understanding?
There's a bit of meandering and a bit of metaphor in this first person narrative, but that only lends itself to the verisimilitude of the story, as a young girl tackles the question of unfairness for pretty much the first time in her life. Her mothers are great at helping her figure it out, and the cat analogies only further underscore the issue for readers who might be fortunate enough never to have encountered hunger in their peers, much less to have experienced it for themselves.
The art is cartoony and cute, and Tia is a character who consistently steals every scene she's in. The commitment to diversity throughout is outstanding. This is a book that deserves to be in every children's library, almost as much as food deserves to be in every kid's pantry.
Shy Cat And The Stuff-The-Bus Challenge by Dian Day & Amanda White was published March 3 2026 by Second Story Press and is available from all good booksellers, including Bookshop!
This review originally appeared at TheFrumiousConsortium.net.
October 10, 2026
I liked this one.
I'm a big fan of having books about food insecurity for all ages and have a few on my list of go-tos for when there's a need or I need to throw a well-done social justice book at someone. This one is full of kids asking the right questions, maybe not owning up to them in the right way, but asking them regardless. The characters are supportive of each other despite some of the lengths gone to for food. It does a great job of highlighting where supports can come from and the trouble folks have finding and using those supports while still doing the best they can.
The art style is a little janky for my taste, but the colour palette is subdued and calming in what has every chance to be an alarming story to some kids who read it.
While Mila recognizes her friend's need, other kids may not realize just how badly hunger might be affecting their friends and neighbours. This book could be a really good starting point for those conversations or recognitions.
This book touches on a lot of stuff while being really accessible, which is always a win for me.
I'm a big fan of having books about food insecurity for all ages and have a few on my list of go-tos for when there's a need or I need to throw a well-done social justice book at someone. This one is full of kids asking the right questions, maybe not owning up to them in the right way, but asking them regardless. The characters are supportive of each other despite some of the lengths gone to for food. It does a great job of highlighting where supports can come from and the trouble folks have finding and using those supports while still doing the best they can.
The art style is a little janky for my taste, but the colour palette is subdued and calming in what has every chance to be an alarming story to some kids who read it.
While Mila recognizes her friend's need, other kids may not realize just how badly hunger might be affecting their friends and neighbours. This book could be a really good starting point for those conversations or recognitions.
This book touches on a lot of stuff while being really accessible, which is always a win for me.
December 20, 2025
Graphic Novel
I received an. electronic ARC from ALA Grab a Galley.
Part of the Hungry Stories Team books.
Mia and Kit are best friends and readers see them play all sorts of games and challenges together. However, Kit is hiding a huge secret. Their family is food insecure. Kit eats large snack portions at Mia's home, and she wonders about this. Her mom helps her understand what is happening. Through a series of cat comics, Mia processes her feelings and learns to be sensitive and supportive of Kit. Hungry cats weave through the story to make the point that animals also are food insecure in large numbers. Powerful reminder about being aware of issues in our own areas.
A must for classroom libraries.
I received an. electronic ARC from ALA Grab a Galley.
Part of the Hungry Stories Team books.
Mia and Kit are best friends and readers see them play all sorts of games and challenges together. However, Kit is hiding a huge secret. Their family is food insecure. Kit eats large snack portions at Mia's home, and she wonders about this. Her mom helps her understand what is happening. Through a series of cat comics, Mia processes her feelings and learns to be sensitive and supportive of Kit. Hungry cats weave through the story to make the point that animals also are food insecure in large numbers. Powerful reminder about being aware of issues in our own areas.
A must for classroom libraries.
May 20, 2026
"Kit ate three bananas in a row ... After Kit went home, Mom told me sometimes rude was just hungry. I thought rude was rude."
Excellent narrative voice! This acknowledges some of the messy bits of food insecurity, like not wanting to feel like a "charity case" or shame from people looking down on you; Great! from a kid's perspective and easy to digest for any age; lighthearted cat comics are dispersed throughout to break the tension
I think this especially relevant in today's current economy. Food prices are getting higher and higher and kids are affected by it, too.
Shout out to the parents who always offered food and recognized when a neighborhood kid or school friend needed it, even if they didn't have much themselves
July 23, 2026
3 stars (I liked it)
I think this book addressed a really important topic (food insecurity) in such a sensitive way that makes it easy for young readers to understand.
Unfortunately, I also think the flow is a bit off. I love cats and all but I felt like the cat comics didn't go all that well with the rest of the story. Overall, I also didn't really care for the illustration style.
It's an important topic, as I said, but there is a bit of the "after school special" feeling - as in it doesn't really feel organic.
I think this book addressed a really important topic (food insecurity) in such a sensitive way that makes it easy for young readers to understand.
Unfortunately, I also think the flow is a bit off. I love cats and all but I felt like the cat comics didn't go all that well with the rest of the story. Overall, I also didn't really care for the illustration style.
It's an important topic, as I said, but there is a bit of the "after school special" feeling - as in it doesn't really feel organic.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Thank you Second Story Press for a copy of this book so I could write an honest review. . I really enjoyed reading this graphic novel. Cats are my favorite and I love how this book was advocating for food and housing for people (and cats). It was nice to read how the children got involved too.
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
A little bumpy with the flow of things, but sets up good questions and situations. Unique illustrations make things a bit softer to counter the serious story.
March 17, 2026
Good introduction to kids about food insecurity
Read
March 19, 2026Reviewed for NFNT.
April 23, 2026
Food insecurity, cats, and friendship
June 16, 2026
A thoughtful introduction to food insecurity and the community of people who try to help
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews