Cats!

by John Hutton, Doug Cenko (Illustrations)

Support your toddler's developing literacy with Cats!, uniquely designed to help families establish reading habits from an early age. Play and learn with cats of all colors, shapes, and sizes! Questions within the book provide a built-in tool for grown-ups to use while reading, encouraging little ones to expand on the story. This type of interactive reading, known as "dialogic reading," is key to developing early literacy skills. Start reading and learning today with Cats!

Genres: Childrens, Cats, Fiction

14 pages, Board book

Published September 1, 2017

About the author

Dr. John S. Hutton is a pediatrician and researcher at the Cincinnati Children's Hospital Reading and Literacy Discovery Center, owner/overseer of blue manatee children’s bookstore and founder of blue manatee press. His research and advocacy interests are the influence of home reading environment and shared reading on early brain development, the health effects of screen-based media, and the creation of children's books to effectively convey infant and child health information. His research was the first to show a measurable effect of home reading exposure prior to kindergarten on brain function, using functional MRI. His Baby Unplugged and Love Baby Healthy book series have been distributed to over 1 million families nationwide, often via statewide public health initiatives. A recovering novelist, he has won awards for his writing in several genres, and attended writing workshops in Iowa City and Squaw Valley, CA. He lives with his family, dogs, cat, rabbit, fish, and a whole bunch of Bees, in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Reviews

[Jasper · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love cats! I live with two cats. This was a fun book to read about cats. The style encourages discussion between my mom and myself. The illustrations are great and the and variety of cats (even lions and tigers!) is excellent.

As a 14 month old, I’m not yet into the discussion part of the book. It was a little awkward starting the book off with fill-in-the blanks. It was hard to know what that was about until you got to the bottom of the page with a bubble that made it obvious what was going on. Also, the square where kids are encouraged to say “black, soft cat”, there is only a tiger in that square!

I saw another review saying the sad wet cat was negative but it is definitely true about the life of a cat that spends time outdoors. They do not like to get wet! They do get sad.

[Connie Sahn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won a copy of CATS! through Goodreads and received the book promptly. The book is a good size and quality with cute illustrations. I can see that the book would promote conversation with an adult reading to a child. My only question is why include a 'wet, sad cat' which is sort of a downer when there are more positive things to teach about cats.

[Emesskay · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really cute book, great to read to little ones. The way the book is written, it encourages the child's interaction, by providing them chances to fill in blanks or relate their own experiences. The illustrations are engaging. I can see this being a favorite child's book in a home where cats reside (though you don't have to have cats to enjoy this book).

[Katherine Downey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you Blue Manatee Press for providing a copy of Cats!

My four year old quickly claimed this book. We love cats and can't have one of our own so it's fun to read about them. This books has cute illustrations and is asks questions as you read. The writing is also at a level that my six year old can mostly read too so that was fun.
We all enjoyed this book.

[Jessi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a cute boardbook for cat-obsessed small kids. It has blanks to fill in, lots of adjectives, and interactive questions. My kiddo likes it as much as Press Here by Hervé Tullet, which is rare. It was written by a Cincinnati-area pediatrician whose focus is on early brain development & literacy.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won this good through Goodreads and sent it to my granddaughters. My 2 1/2 year old granddaughter loves this book. And it's entertaining enough to hold her attention while she "reads" independently. Thank you Goodreads.

[Catherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great book for toddler. I won this book from a Goodreads giveaway.

[Neeli · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fantastic read to encourage language development and dialogue with young readers. Great format for independent readers.

[Gina Adams · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute book for the 4 year old. He liked the pictures and the words but I myself thought the words didn't make much sense from page to page. As long as he liked it it's cool with me though. :)

[Michelle Farella · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great prompting questions to extend discussion! Great guidance for parents!

[Danette · Rating 2 out of 5]

8/1/18 Read with Julia

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super cute

[Ad Astra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Instant hit. My daughter loves cats.

[Bailey Roy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is full of funny cat references that any cat owner can relate to. Very clever book in both the writing and illustrations!

[Maeghan Nutmeg Librarian · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you love asking the kids questions like I do, then you'll have fun.