Pete the Kitty and the Groovy Playdate

Pete the Cat

by Kimberly Dean, James Dean

This groovy series from New York Times bestselling team James and Kimberly Dean introduces Pete the Cat before he was Pete the Cat...when he was little Pete the Kitty! Pete the Kitty is super excited to visit his friend Grumpy Toad’s house for a playdate! Grumpy Toad has all the best a truck, building blocks, and a superhero cape. Far out! It’s going to be cat-tastic! But when Grumpy Toad refuses to share any of his cool toys with Pete, neither of them are having any fun. Will Grumpy Toad ever share his toys with his friend Pete? In this easy-to-read and engaging picture book, little readers will learn all about sharing with their favorite blue kitten!

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Animals, Friendship, Cats, Storytime, Fiction

32 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 2018

Reviews

[Candace · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pete the Kitty has a playdate with Grumpy Toad. The only problem is each time Pete plays with one of Grumpy Toad's toys, he cries "Mine, Mine, Mine!" Pete feels it's not a great playdate because Grumpy Toad won't share his toys. What will Pete and Grumpy Toad do to make it a fun playdate?

A vivid, colorful book with page-size illustrations will keep children's attention while teaching the importance of sharing, and doing it cheerfully. This is another delightful addition to the Pete the Kitty series. In the beginning of the book the authors list the scripture text 2 Corinthians 9:7. It states, "You must each decide in your heart how much to give. And don't give reluctantly or in response to pressure. For God loves a person who gives cheerfully." The verse helps us understand Pete's solution to not sharing and Grumpy Toad's change of heart.

[Yaritza · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a cute book that teaches children to share their toys with friends. Pete was super excited to have a play-date with grumpy Toad. Once grumpy Toad took all his toys back he realized it wasn't fun if they both didn't play together. Sharing is so much better when you have friends to share the fun with.

[Morgan Hagenbuch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kirby really needed this book after stealing all the neighbor boys' toys.

[Abigail · Rating 2 out of 5]

Husband and wife team James and Kimberly Dean explore the kittenhood of their famous feline character Pete the Cat in this tenth full-sized picture-book devoted to his adventures. Excited at the prospect of a playdate with his friend, Grumpy Toad, Pete the Kitty finds to his surprise that his playmate isn't interested in sharing any of his toys. Can this kitty convince his batrachian friend that sharing makes playing more fun...?

I appreciated the message of sharing explored in Pete the Kitty and the Groovy Playdate, a message that, like many of the recent Pete the Cat books, is also subtly highlighted through the biblical reference on the title page, in this case, to 2 Corinthians 9:7. That said, I found the meter of this 'poetic' picture-book somewhat off, and thought that most of the rhymes were quite forced. James Dean's artwork is colorful and bright, as it always is, but I finished the book with the feeling that this franchise is getting a little bit... thin. Still, determined young fans will undoubtedly enjoy this look at their favorite cat's youth, and it is to them that I would recommend the book. For those who are looking for children's stories about sharing, but aren't already Pete the Cat fans, I would recommend titles like the recent Pie is for Sharing , a wonderful new Fourth of July story by Stephanie Parsley Ledyard and Jason Chin.

[Jillian · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice book about sharing (though I'm not sure it needed to be taken so far as for Grumpy Frog to declare "they're OUR toys now.")
I wish there was some sort of meter to the rhyme - I keep trying to make it "groovy," but I just can't find the rhythm.

[Krysta · Rating 2 out of 5]

A didactic storyline about sharing toys paired with a rhyming scheme with no discernible meter.

[Bethany Keeley · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't love this one but my kid keeps asking for it (it's a library book so it will be going back soon). I found it overly didactic and not very easy to read, plus my 2yo seems to have missed the main takeaway and just likes to repeat "mine mine mine!"

[Karen Rosas · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book has excellent transitions between pages where the children can image and focus on one or two characters. The book is colorful and bright. The attention gather is the action of Grumpy toad (anti-agonist) and Pete (protagonist). It ends in a good note. Great for socialization.

[Olivia S · Rating 2 out of 5]

Pretty boring, although the kids enjoyed the repetition of "MINE MINE MINE!" from Grumpy Toad. Nothing special, but works with kids ~4 who are obsessed with fair-ness.

[Allison · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wow! Sharing Rocks! While the rhymes are at times stilted, I do like this Pete the Kitty.

[Oliver Laurie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Never read it but it sounds amazing 👏 👏

[Kandyce · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to Lilly, I reached my Goodreads goal💕

[Meg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute book about sharing. Although, the emphasis on the repeating “mine, mine, mine” has slightly confused my 2 year old on the message of sharing.

[Isabel Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pete the Kitty and Grumpy Toad are having a playdate...only, there is one big problem: Grumpy Toad does NOT like to share. Each time Pete tries to play with one of his toys, Grumpy Toad (true to his name) throws a hissy fit! Sigh. What's a kitty to do? See how Pete the Kitty turns this bad playdate upside down in the latest Pete the Cat installment. A fun story that highlights the important of sharing, this is sure to become a favorite for many children, parents, and teachers.

[Tommie Branscum · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pete just has not been the same since the original creators started feuding with one another. I want to like the books they are trying to do with this fun character but they are always just a bit off. I like the repeating refrain in this one and the message is good too but for some reason you can never get the repeating section to fall into a good reading rhythm with the rest of the story. I think kids will like to check it out and see a favorite character again but part of the magic of the original books was how fun they were to read aloud and I haven't felt that with the solo efforts these guys keep throwing out to the public.

[Cara Byrne · Rating 3 out of 5]

While the Deans seem to be overcapitalizing on Pete the cat books (with some less-than-stellar recent titles), this book stands up with an issue most toddlers face: refusal to share. Pete tries to play with Toad, but he just doesn't want anyone touching his toys. The resolution places friendship over material belongings (which does not always happen with young ones, but I appreciate the message).

[Jennifer Bast · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this for the first time 3 weeks ago with a group of preschoolers, and have read it at least once a school day ever since. It is one of their favorites. I think it strikes a chord with them from the perspective of Pete and Grumpy Toad. It's a tension they face every day, wanting the control and power of all the toys, yet also desiring fun and friendship with their classmates.

[Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Two things I really liked about this book:
1. The pictures tell the story. If there were no words, or you couldn’t read, you would still get the main points of the story through the pictures
2. Pete the Kitty and Grumpy Frog solves their problem on their own through words rather than someone getting upset, throwing a fit, or having adults intervene

[Nichole · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pete's friend Grumpy Toad has him over for a playdate but refuses to share his toys. This has a nice lesson about sharing, but I wonder why they had to make Pete a kitten? Do we need another series with Pete being younger? Necessary lesson, unnecessary character change.

[Valleri · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute book, but still not as endearing as the original.

[Melodie · Rating 3 out of 5]

“Sharing is caring.”

[Kym · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great for teaching sharing

[McKenzie Richardson · Rating 4 out of 5]

For more reviews, check out my blog: Craft-Cycle

Nice book about sharing, similar to Llama Llama Time to Share. The thing I really liked about this book was that Pete the Kitty and Grumpy Toad figured out a solution all by themselves. Instead of having a grownup come in and lecture them about why sharing is good, they figured things out for themselves. I think this is a good way to get the message across to kids. It's nice to see a young character figure out a solution rather than having an adult tell them the answer. Nice way to give power to children in such situations.

I picked this up because I work with a little girl who likes Pete the Cat. She also loves pretending to be "baby" versions of her favorite characters (Baby Poppy, Baby Leonardo, Baby Elsa) so I figured it would be a good fit. She loved the idea of a "baby" Pete the Cat. She also enjoyed the bright colors and the catchy refrain of "Mine, mine, mine".

Overall, a good book about sharing, featuring a beloved children's book character.

[Siarra · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a story of sharing between Pete the Kitty and the Grumpy toad. Pete went to have a playdate with Grumpy toad and was so excited to play. Then, Grumpy Toad claimed that all the toys were his and did not want to share. Pete the Kitty did not like the playdate anymore. Then, he had the realization that he could do so many fun things if he shared the toys with Pete the Kitty. After Grumpy Toad decided to share, him and Pete the Kitty had such a fun playdate with all of the toys. I think this story is good for younger children, who are still learning to share. However, there is not much detail to it. It is very to the point, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. I think the story could be made stronger and still be an amazing story about sharing. This book could be used as an interactive read aloud if I am in a classroom with younger students. We would start by discussing some of their favorite toys and the idea of sharing with our friends. During the read aloud, the students would read "Mine! Mine! Mine!" with the teacher and discuss the toys. The book is a good opportunity to teach the concept of sharing with our friends when playing.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This picturebook/board book contains a great message about sharing and friendship for children ages 1-4. The play date between Pete the Kitty and his friend Grumpy Toad is very true to life situation in which children who have other children over for play dates often are very possessive of their own toys and are reluctant to share. This book shows how much more fun playing together is than playing alone regardless of who the toys belong to. It is also humorously easy to gauge the moods of Pete the Kitty and Grumpy Toad by looking at how big each of their eyes are and by looking at the position of Toad’s glasses and Pete’s ears.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

the genre is picture book. the age is young children learning to read. the book is about Pete the kitty goes over to grumpy toad's house to have a play date and grumpy toad does not want to share. but soon he realizes it will be more fun if he shared with Pete the kitty. so, they play till nighttime, and they had a great day. i gave this book a 5 star because it told a great story about sharing with friends. it also has great colors in the book also the illustrations really depict what the author is saying on each page.

[Andrés · Rating 3 out of 5]

The illustrations tell the story, and the words will resonate with 2-5 years olds; older kids will likely fixate less on "mine, mine, mine." I like that Pete the Kitty thinks about what to do, then states very clearly, "Wouldn't it be better if we were playing together?" Miraculously(?) Grumpy Toad comes to a realization that its no fun playing alone, based on that simple provocation, so Kitty and Toad play together and have a wonderful time. There's probably some useful conversation to come out of each stage of this story.

[Kelley Mitchell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't regret the purchase, it WILL circulate. Kiddos love Pete the Cat. BUT. . . . I think when Litwin and James Dean split, Dean got the character. The art is still compelling and the storyline is appropriate - but the humor and great musicality is gone. Likewise Litwin's work lacks the compelling sweetness inherent in Dean's work. Whether or not they got along - they sure did create some awesome kid's literature together.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a Pete the Cat book aimed to an even younger audience. Pete the kitty is going on a playdate with his buddy who does not want to share his toys. Eventually the friend realizes that it is no fun to play alone and does share after all.

Bright, colorful illustrations with repeated text make this a good bet for young readers. I also read this with our self-contained class and it went over well. We then talked about what was one thing they could share with another person.

[Sarah Alamer · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Great job reading ""Pete the Kitty and the Groovy Playdate,"" sweet Sarah!
You learned such an important lesson about sharing with friends. Just like Pete and Grumpy Toad discovered, sharing toys makes everyone have way more fun together! Next time you have a playdate, you can remember how good it feels when friends share nicely with each other.
We're so proud of how well you're reading - keep it up, sweetheart!"