Tiptop Cat

by C. Roger Mader

A curious cat plus a big fall leads to squashed confidence. How this cat bounces back will encourage readers everywhere to try, try again.

Genres: Picture Books, Cats, Animals, Childrens, France, Adventure, Fiction

1 pages, Audio CD

First published September 1, 2014

Reviews

[Danielle Long · Rating 5 out of 5]

The tale of a black and white cat who has found a new home and goes exploring. Only to find his furry behind in trouble as he tries to snatch a bird. He takes a tumble and his pride and spirit are hurt.

I love this book for several reasons
1.) The book has wonderful illustrations and they are vivid and detailed.
2.) The text in the book is very simple and easy follow, so young children can follow along.
3.) It shows that cats are very curious by nature and sometimes they get into situations that make us either laugh or cry.
4.) The book also shows that even animals have feelings and they too can get their feelings hurt. (those who don't believe they hurt, cry and so forth shame on you!)
5.) I own a cat and know the antics my kitty gets into.

[Kaethe · Rating 5 out of 5]

05 Sep 2022

While I remain pleased with the paintings, this didn't feel at all heavy-handed to me this morning. Today it just felt hopeful. Although it does make me miss our own beloved Calder Alexander Eno who suffered a rather less traumatic fall from the window sill he was napping on when the screen popped out and dropped him 5 feet down into the front yard. Such a sweet cat.

***

04 Jan 2015

A tad heavy on the lesson to be learned from this, but the art was gorgeous. Lots of pretty pictures of a tuxedo.

Library copy

[Aimee Dars · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little girl receives Tiptop Cat for her birthday, and he loves his new home. In fact, his favorite place is the roof where he can see across the tops of buildings all the way to the Eiffel Tower. One afternoon, a bird dared alight on the cat’s balcony. He jumped at her...and fell...down...down...down...down. Miraculously, he was uninjured but he lost his confidence. That is, until he saw another bird in his domain.

The illustrations in Tiptop Cat are absolutely gorgeous and very life-like, and were my favorite part of this book. On some spreads, they are presented in panels, like in comic strips. (I’m of two minds about this. It’s different and interesting, providing some sense of forward movement, but the small size of the images detracts from their effect). The text on the pages is often presented in unusual places which I also thought was a fun detail.



I didn’t enjoy this book as much as I expected for two reasons. First, Tiptop cat regains his mojo not because of anything he did or thought but just because of instinct when he saw another bird on the roof. I thought this was a missed opportunity to model to children how they might be able to recover after a setback.

Second, and here I am being pedantic, but I think it is a bad idea to legitimize allowing cats outside. Outdoor cats have a shorter lifespan due to things like predators, cars, and, ahem, falls. Additionally, outdoor cats threaten birds and native wildlife. Organizations like American Humane and the American Bird Conservancy, and Audubon all call for responsible cat owners to keep their cats indoors for their own safety and that of the ecosystem. (It is a complete myth that indoor cats are unhappy!)

So, thumbs up for the art in Tiptop Cat, thumbs down for the message.


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[Tasha · Rating 5 out of 5]

When the cat comes to his new home, he sets out to explore. He looks around discovers that he can get outside to the balcony. And from there, he can head up and up to the rooftop where he finds a favorite spot on the top of a chimney. Then one morning as he is dozing on the balcony, a pigeon comes and lands on the railing. The cat turns into a hunter and starts stalking the bird, finally pouncing on it. But birds can fly, and cats cannot. So the cat fell, down, down, down. Falling right through an awning and into the arms of a man. No bones were broken, but the cat lost any desire to head outside. He hid in baskets, under rugs and behind curtains. But then, a crow came to the balcony and strutted up and down and once again the cat became interested in the outdoors and in his favorite high-up place.

Mader captures the essence of a domestic cat on the page. From the very first image of the cat with birthday ribbons, readers will know that this is an author who understands cats and the way they think. Mader uses very simple language in the book, letting the images tell much of the story. In fact, the illustrations are so very strong that the book could easily be wordless.

And the illustrations are stunning. They are detailed and realistic. The format switches from full page and double page spreads to panels that move the action forward in a wonderfully energetic way. As the cat moves to the fateful pounce, the panels show him edging forward, lengthening the time before the moment of movement. In the same way, the larger pages show the cat’s fall down and down, making it last and last, creating real drama on the way down.

This dazzlingly illustrated picture book will have cat lovers meowing with joy and even the smallest children leaned forward to see what befalls this fearless feline. Appropriate for ages 2-4.

[Cara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful artwork! Captures the spirit of a cat so well. You can see what got me to pick up this book...

[Debbie McNeil · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolutely stunning illustrations!

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful black and white tuxedo cat loves his life on the sixth floor of a Parisian apartment. As cats will do, he explores his home and discovers the balcony which allows him to leap to the rooftop and survey the city from his perch. When he somehow survives a fall from the balcony while trying to catch a pigeon, he returns home a bit sheepish and fearful. Eventually, he heads out to the balcony once more and scampers onto the rooftop. The reminder to readers not to allow fear to keep them from doing what they want to do is a bit heavy-handed, and I finished the book worried about the cat having another accident, but I still liked it for the feline's irrepressibly curious and determined nature. Most of all, though, I loved it for the stunning pastel illustrations. They capture the cat's personality and the beauty of Paris, spread out almost at his feet, a visual feast. Readers will also want to check out the beautiful endpapers.

[Helen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked the illustrations and the plot of this story! It shows how to recover from a fear-inducing bad experience. It also shows the value of a vet, for needy animals.

[l · Rating 3 out of 5]

Adorable illustrations but this normalizes outdoor cats. Which is wrong.

[Jana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! What a treat this book is! I was drawn to it, by the beautiful illustration on the cover. Some years ago, I had a black-and-white cat named Homer. Homer was a nosy cat, who always got himself into trouble of some kind. One of his worst habits was going through open garage doors in the neighborhood, and then getting himself shut inside when the door was closed.

When you open the book, you get to experience the appealing endpapers that show the dark rooftops of Paris with kitty-cat tracks on them. The tracks start in the front of the book and end at the back of the book. How can you not dig in to a book with this sort of art to greet you?!

The story tells of a curious cat that was received by someone as a gift. The cat checks out the apartment. The cat in the text and illustrations is so totally Homer, that this book makes me feel wistful for the cat who's been gone for ten years now. When the cat leaves the apartment's balcony to wander the rooftops of the city, he winds up at his favorite spot, a chimney with a stunning view of the Eiffel Tower.

The cat gets himself into trouble, just like Homer would, but it all turns out fine. This is a great story of resilience. The artwork has really grabbed me, and I think I need to get my own copy of this book (as I borrowed this one from my local library). The last illustration in the book shows the cat in his favorite spot, gazing at the Eiffel Tower at night, with the lights of Paris spread out below him. Sigh....

[Paula · Rating 4 out of 5]

This handsome picture book relates the story of a cat that has recently become a pet of owners living in a tall Parisian apartment building. After exploring the nearby rooftops, chimney tops and balconies, he finds the perfect spot from which to view his city. However, one day a pigeon intrudes upon the cat’s relaxation time, and in an effort to shoo it away, the cat misjudges his pounce and goes careening over the balcony, falling down several floors, past a pianist, past a woman doing yoga, and past a wide-eyed beagle. Luckily, an awning breaks his fall and he lands in the arms of a surprised grocer. The x-rays reveal no broken bones, but the cat has lost his joie de vivre. He stays cowered in his apartment until one day, the appearance of a crow on the balcony rekindles his spirit and zest for climbing and jumping. He ventures outside and chases the crow all around the rooftops and balconies and discovers he is once again on top of the world. Spreads of oversized cats, birds and buildings are interspersed with pages of comic strip panels. The extremely minimalist text makes this almost a wordless book. The theme is thought-provoking and the illustrations will captivate young and older readers alike. It’s an interesting addition to any library.

[Christiane · Rating 4 out of 5]

A bold black and white cat likes to sit on the highest point of the roof top (where he has a wonderful view of the Eiffel Tower). But one day he pounces on a pigeon and has a confidence-destroying fall. Will kitty ever sit in his favorite spot again? The illustrations are realistic and lovely; I especially like the page showing scared cat in all his close to the ground hiding spots. Many pages are divided up into cartoon-like panels, which really shows the progression of the story. Recommended!

[Nick · Rating 4 out of 5]

The illustrations are beautiful, and it's a great story about not giving up after a misstep or failure.
The cat in the story enjoys high places until being frightened by a terrible fall, but eventually finds its way back to its favorite rooftop, ironically guided there by the same instinct for chasing birds which had led to the original fall.
Even without the story, this is a great book for anyone who likes cats, because of the artwork.

[Elaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

We have a cat that looks much like the cat in this book so I had to check it out. It's a cute story with great illustrations. I like how it varies between double full page spreads that put you right in the middle of the action to film strips that show details of the cat's actions. Some of the expressions and movements of the cat are just perfect and so much like our cat! I'm glad we don't live on the sixth floor in Paris though. I'd be worried about my cat falling too!

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

When a new cat arrives as a birthday present, he quickly shows his bravery and prowess as he climbs to the top of everything, eventually to the rooftops of Paris, where this Tiptop cat can see the whole city. But when a tempting pidgeon causes a scary fall, the TipTop cat becomes afraid of leaving the safety of the floor. Can another bird make him brave enough to climb again?

This story is adorable! Such a great read aloud with the cutest illustrations ever!

[Glenna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! C. Roger Mader obviously knows kitties very well and has beautifully captured the behavior and expressions of this tuxedo cat. He has used both full-page illustrations and the smaller graphic-novel-style pictures to tell this story. When his attempt to catch a pigeon turns into near disaster, his spirit is wounded, but not broken. A delightful and encouraging try, try again book (but don't try this at home!). ;)

[Asho · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perhaps the fact that I have owned a couple of beloved, mischevious tuxedo cats made me predisposed to like this book, but I found it utterly charming. I admired the illustrations so much that I immediately ordered a copy to give to my grandmother (another fan of tuxedo cats).
My three-year-old wasn't as interested in this as I was--I don't think it had enough story action for him--but my one-year-old seems to like the illustrations as much as I do.
Beautiful book!

[Tina · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you like cats, you will love this book. The artwork especially is enough to make you want to cuddle your own kitty. The story is a simple one, easy to identify with and understand for even young readers, but it is the art that will take your breath away. Especially if like me, you see your own cat in the pictures.

[Monica · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was highly reviewed and I liked the sample I saw. So glad I bought it! The illustrations are very realistic and due to little text, move the story along in an almost comic strip format. I am not a cat lover, but yet, I loved this cat.

Also going to be recommending this new book to parents!

[BiblioBeruthiel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like both the art and the story for this one. Could be a good addition for a cat storytime. Good themes about trying again even after a setback. I'm a little concerned this could be a bit scary or that it would be hard for kids to understand that cats can survive falls that people or other animals cannot.

[Tara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute, great pictures but it makes me nervous. I personally don't believe in outdoor cats but to each their own. I prefer to know my cat is okay at all times.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful pictures and a good book for practicing inferencing with students.

[Moira · Rating 5 out of 5]

I hope this author/illustrator creates more stories with this kitty! Beautiful art.

[Kris Dersch · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cat lovers of all ages will appreciate this one.

[Kathryn · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful story with even more beautiful illustrations.

[Anna · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was an alright book. At first I read the first few pages the wrong way. I was reading the book like any other book, from left to right, page by page, but with this book it's different in some parts. You still read from left to right, but you follow the illustrations kind of like a comic panel.

SPOILERS AHEAD:

I'm glad the cat was okay and didn't actually land on the ground, because I don't think it would have survived if it landed on the ground. It was cute how the crow made the cat go up to the roof again in the end though.

[Bluebelle-the-Inquisitive (Catherine) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is so lovely. I love the adventures of the beautiful kitty. Its a simple adventure story but it's made by the illustrations.

The author and illustrator, Roger Mader, is very creative and has based the actual Parisian skyline. The illustrations come from actual photos that he took then turned into pastel paintings and turned the backgrounds for the unnamed cat to play in.

[Jelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful illustrations that capture cat behavior so well. I love that the story depicts a scene at the vet after the cat's fall making sure he was ok.

[Fyo]

I was genuinely TERRIFIED for the cat. My cat likes walking across the bannister of our upper floor and it scares me, so I felt very involved in this book. Fortunately the cat is safe in the end.

[Heidi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful artwork accompanies a story told equally with words and images. I loved this author's "Stowaway in a Sleigh" and want to read "Lost Cat" as well. This story is one of finding courage after a traumatic incident.
But being involved with cat rescue - the very first thing I did when I saw the cat on the balcony, was count how many floors UP it was. (8, by the way) I feel it highlights the dangers of cats in high-rises unprotected from those heights.
Makes for an excellent conversation point about feline safety.