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Cat and Rat: The Legend of the Chinese Zodiac
Caldecott Medal-winning author and illustrator Ed Young brings an ancient Chinese folktale to life in the children's picture book Cat and Rat .
To select the animals of the zodiac, the Jade Emperor has called for a race between all the animals with the first twelve winners honored by having years named after them.
Cat and Rat were once the best of friends--until this contest made them the worst of enemies.
To select the animals of the zodiac, the Jade Emperor has called for a race between all the animals with the first twelve winners honored by having years named after them.
Cat and Rat were once the best of friends--until this contest made them the worst of enemies.
32 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1995
9 people are currently reading
109 people want to read
About the author
Ed Young
154 books89 followersEd Young is the illustrator of more than eighty books for children, seventeen of which he has also written. Among his books is the Caldecott Medal winner Lon Po Po, which he both wrote and illustrated. He says that his work is inspired by the philosophy of Chinese painting. He lives in Westchester County, New York.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
October 1, 2013
Young illustrations are lovely, although the story itself (an explanation of the order of animals in the zodiac) kind of bummed me out. Why you gotta screw over your best friend like that, rat?
February 16, 2016
One of my favorite legends to read from the Chinese culture. I am going to read it to the students today in celebration of the Chinese New Year. Happy year of the Monkey!
November 27, 2017
This book has not won any awards.
"Cat and Rat: The Legend of the Chinese Zodiac" is appropriate for pre-k to third grade students.
This book is about the zodiacs, and how the Jade Emperor chose which animals will be part of the zodiac. He has all of the animals race each other, and the winners will be included in the zodiac. This book is about the legend of how the 5,000 year old zodiac was created and incorporated into the culture.
This book is great for introducing the Chinese culture into the classroom. Many students do not know a lot about cultures that are not their own, and including this book into the classroom will help them understand the culture of others. The legend is very interesting, and a good topic to incorporate into the classroom.
This book can be used in a classroom setting as a read-aloud, which will then introduce students to Chinese culture, and the story behind zodiac. Students can learn about their own zodiac sign, and why they exist in the first place. Students can also be asked to learn more about Chinese culture through research of their own, and to write about what they learned.
"Cat and Rat: The Legend of the Chinese Zodiac" is appropriate for pre-k to third grade students.
This book is about the zodiacs, and how the Jade Emperor chose which animals will be part of the zodiac. He has all of the animals race each other, and the winners will be included in the zodiac. This book is about the legend of how the 5,000 year old zodiac was created and incorporated into the culture.
This book is great for introducing the Chinese culture into the classroom. Many students do not know a lot about cultures that are not their own, and including this book into the classroom will help them understand the culture of others. The legend is very interesting, and a good topic to incorporate into the classroom.
This book can be used in a classroom setting as a read-aloud, which will then introduce students to Chinese culture, and the story behind zodiac. Students can learn about their own zodiac sign, and why they exist in the first place. Students can also be asked to learn more about Chinese culture through research of their own, and to write about what they learned.
February 10, 2021
A beautifully illustrates children's storybook about the origin of the Chinese Zodiac - just in time for a homeschool unit on dynastic China and for Luna New Year (in 3 days, as I write this, the Year of the Rat will end and the Year of the Ox will begin!).
July 9, 2021
Beautiful illustrations! Nicely paced story of how the animals raced to have a year in Chinese calendar (zodiac) named after them. Best friends Cat and Rat know they don't have a chance because of their size, so they ask for help from Ox/Buffalo, but Rat outsmarts both of them to be first.
November 11, 2024
This picture book explains how the 12 animals associated with each year in the Chinese zodiac came to be. I liked the moody, impressionistic illustrations, but they were sometimes so dark and gestural that it was hard to find the animals. There also wasn't a huge payoff or surprise in the story.
February 17, 2025
Not a fan of the nightmarish illustrations. The first few were dark in an atmospheric way, but then everything rapidly devolved into a horrid fever dream. I can’t imagine inflicting this on a young child.
August 31, 2021
I liked it because they raced and the cat lost so then the rat and cat were enemies.
September 23, 2021
Cat gets totally hosed and it ain’t right.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 26, 2022
The best animals join the Zodiac!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! LOL.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 6, 2023
Not a big fan of the illustrations. Educational value in introducing children to the animals of the zodiac.
May 21, 2013
Get ready to race into this amazing folktale! Cat and Rat by Ed Young will take you on an adventure that everyone will adore. It is a race to the finish line and everyone wants first prize. But only twelve will get to have a year in the Chinese calendar named after them. Who will win the race?
In this awesome book the characters change dramatically throughout the story. From friends to enemies Cat and Rat are two very exciting animals. There is a lot of thrilling action and I think it is a very interesting way to explain why cats and rats don’t like each other. For example, one part with action is when Rat pushes Cat into the river! This book has lots of emotions and you can really feel how Cat’s feeling. Like when she has to swim to the finish line you can feel how desperate she is. Once I started this book I couldn’t put it down!
This book is great because it is filled with adventure! I love this book and definitely think you should read it. This immediately became one of my favorite folktales and I hope it will become yours to.
By Riley
Cat and Rat: a book review
Do you know that you are an animal in the Chinese zodiac? Well, if you do, good job, BUT, I bet that you don’t know HOW the animals got there. Did you realize there isn’t a cat in the the zodiac? This exciting and fun book will make you POP! Read this amazing book to find out what happens and who wins!
Cat and Rat are best friends. They eat, sleep, and do everything together. Then, one day the emperor calls a race. Not a usual race. A race to get a spot in the Chinese zodiac!!! But, rat is smart and clever so he uses his brain to get a lot of things. He uses it for this case to. For example, in this book Rat convinces the Water buffalo for a ride on the way because the Water buffalo gets up SO early and is good at going across the river. On the way Rat gets selfish and doesn’t want to share the glory of being first with the others, Cat and the Water buffalo.What will happen next?
This fun and interesting book will inform you on first of all, how the animals got to be in the Chinese zodiac and, and why there aren’t any animals like cats and dogs and other things. If you think you like this book, you can read others by Ed Young like Lon po po. Both stories have very powerful and impressive artwork so check out Cat and Rat and other books by Ed Young.
By:Cedric
In this awesome book the characters change dramatically throughout the story. From friends to enemies Cat and Rat are two very exciting animals. There is a lot of thrilling action and I think it is a very interesting way to explain why cats and rats don’t like each other. For example, one part with action is when Rat pushes Cat into the river! This book has lots of emotions and you can really feel how Cat’s feeling. Like when she has to swim to the finish line you can feel how desperate she is. Once I started this book I couldn’t put it down!
This book is great because it is filled with adventure! I love this book and definitely think you should read it. This immediately became one of my favorite folktales and I hope it will become yours to.
By Riley
Cat and Rat: a book review
Do you know that you are an animal in the Chinese zodiac? Well, if you do, good job, BUT, I bet that you don’t know HOW the animals got there. Did you realize there isn’t a cat in the the zodiac? This exciting and fun book will make you POP! Read this amazing book to find out what happens and who wins!
Cat and Rat are best friends. They eat, sleep, and do everything together. Then, one day the emperor calls a race. Not a usual race. A race to get a spot in the Chinese zodiac!!! But, rat is smart and clever so he uses his brain to get a lot of things. He uses it for this case to. For example, in this book Rat convinces the Water buffalo for a ride on the way because the Water buffalo gets up SO early and is good at going across the river. On the way Rat gets selfish and doesn’t want to share the glory of being first with the others, Cat and the Water buffalo.What will happen next?
This fun and interesting book will inform you on first of all, how the animals got to be in the Chinese zodiac and, and why there aren’t any animals like cats and dogs and other things. If you think you like this book, you can read others by Ed Young like Lon po po. Both stories have very powerful and impressive artwork so check out Cat and Rat and other books by Ed Young.
By:Cedric
March 30, 2013
APA: Young, E. (1995). Cat and Rat: the legend of the Chinese zodiac. New York: H. Holt.
Subgroup Chinese Zodiac
Genre: Fiction
Language: English
Relate: This story allows children to imagine how the Chinese Zodiac came to be while also explaining why the cat is not in the Chinese zodiac.
Synopsis: This story is about friendship, competition and why the cat hates the rat. The story begins with the friendship of the cat and the rat. These two animals never leave each other’s side, eating together, playing together and sleeping together. One day the Emperor announces that he will have a great race and the first twelve animals to reach his palace will have a year named after them. The rat and the cat know that they are too small to beat the other animals so they try a short cut by crossing the river on the back of a yak. While cat is sleep rat begins to fantasize about having his name up first on the emperor’s calendar. Rat knows that he would not be able to beat cat once they reached shore so he comes up with a plan to distract cat. Cat loves to eat fish, rat tricks cat into falling in the river while looking for the big fish swimming around the yak. As soon as the yak reaches shore rat races towards the finish line as cat struggles to swim for shore. Unfortunately it takes cat such a long time to reach shore that all twelve spaces in the emperor’s calendar are filled by the time he gets there. From that point on cat has always hated rat for making him lose his space in the emperor’s calendar.
Subgroup Chinese Zodiac
Genre: Fiction
Language: English
Relate: This story allows children to imagine how the Chinese Zodiac came to be while also explaining why the cat is not in the Chinese zodiac.
Synopsis: This story is about friendship, competition and why the cat hates the rat. The story begins with the friendship of the cat and the rat. These two animals never leave each other’s side, eating together, playing together and sleeping together. One day the Emperor announces that he will have a great race and the first twelve animals to reach his palace will have a year named after them. The rat and the cat know that they are too small to beat the other animals so they try a short cut by crossing the river on the back of a yak. While cat is sleep rat begins to fantasize about having his name up first on the emperor’s calendar. Rat knows that he would not be able to beat cat once they reached shore so he comes up with a plan to distract cat. Cat loves to eat fish, rat tricks cat into falling in the river while looking for the big fish swimming around the yak. As soon as the yak reaches shore rat races towards the finish line as cat struggles to swim for shore. Unfortunately it takes cat such a long time to reach shore that all twelve spaces in the emperor’s calendar are filled by the time he gets there. From that point on cat has always hated rat for making him lose his space in the emperor’s calendar.
November 21, 2010
Published in 1998 by Henry Holt and Co.
Interest Level: 3rd-5th Grade
This is the story of the Chinese Zodiac and how the rat tricked the cat so that he was unable to be part of the set of zodiac animals. The illustrations seem "cloudy" and seem to be made of paper and oil pastels. This effect allows for the reader to imagine the action and characters as they want without focusing on the illustrations solely. The spare use of color focused the story on the plot and various animals while it also contributed to the mystery and unrealistic parts of this story. The book begins with an author's note and the full Chinese Zodiac before the story begins. Also, the text is shown on a black portion of each two-page spread with the illustration taking a prominent place.
What I particularly liked were the toned-down illustrations with backgrounds that matched each animal. In addition, the story is told quite simply and plainly and that adds the mystery and tension between the cat and rat characters. The various animals at times were not clear until I read the text but I found that enjoyable, since so many comparable books spell out each part of this traditional Chinese story.
Interest Level: 3rd-5th Grade
This is the story of the Chinese Zodiac and how the rat tricked the cat so that he was unable to be part of the set of zodiac animals. The illustrations seem "cloudy" and seem to be made of paper and oil pastels. This effect allows for the reader to imagine the action and characters as they want without focusing on the illustrations solely. The spare use of color focused the story on the plot and various animals while it also contributed to the mystery and unrealistic parts of this story. The book begins with an author's note and the full Chinese Zodiac before the story begins. Also, the text is shown on a black portion of each two-page spread with the illustration taking a prominent place.
What I particularly liked were the toned-down illustrations with backgrounds that matched each animal. In addition, the story is told quite simply and plainly and that adds the mystery and tension between the cat and rat characters. The various animals at times were not clear until I read the text but I found that enjoyable, since so many comparable books spell out each part of this traditional Chinese story.
July 21, 2013
Cat and Rat are friends and desperately want to be included among the twelve animals that will make up the Chinese zodiac. In order to be counted among the elite, they must win a race against all the other animals in the land and cross the finish line somewhere between 1st and 12th place.
Both animals doubt that they will be able to physically outperform the likes of the tiger or other large beasts so they scheme to outwit the other animals by getting a head start atop the back of a Buffalo. All is going well until the spirit of competition entices the animals to betray one another. It is this betrayal that leads to rat's 1st place finish and cat's 13th place finish and changes their relationship from former friends to enemies.
Illustrations were rendered using charcoal and pastels.
A list along with a description of qualities associated with each animal of the Chinese zodiac appears before the story and an author's note.
I loved this tale! This would make a good read aloud for audiences working on a folktale unit. The characters are ones that readers can root for and then make their own judgments and the premise is great for pacing.
Both animals doubt that they will be able to physically outperform the likes of the tiger or other large beasts so they scheme to outwit the other animals by getting a head start atop the back of a Buffalo. All is going well until the spirit of competition entices the animals to betray one another. It is this betrayal that leads to rat's 1st place finish and cat's 13th place finish and changes their relationship from former friends to enemies.
Illustrations were rendered using charcoal and pastels.
A list along with a description of qualities associated with each animal of the Chinese zodiac appears before the story and an author's note.
I loved this tale! This would make a good read aloud for audiences working on a folktale unit. The characters are ones that readers can root for and then make their own judgments and the premise is great for pacing.
May 13, 2015
With simple images conveyed in powerful strokes, Mr. Young gives children the story of the Chinese Zodiac, focusing on the various aspects of the featured animals to put themselves on the list. But first and last in the story is how the deceitful rat tricked his former best friend in order to be first among the animals. The book also comes with helpful listings of all the animals in the zodiac, the personality traits of the people born in those years and an author’s note about how the zodiac is used in modern times. This expressive story is a wonderful recounting of this story and the illustrations are a demonstration of how less is often more.
October 22, 2010
I’ve been a fan of children’s book illustrators ever since working in the children’s department of the public library in Columbus, Indiana years ago. A special favorite is Ed Young. This is a particularly striking book in which Mr. Young’s mystical paintings illustrate the twelve animals of the Chinese Zodiac. The illustrations are accompanied by his interpretation of a Chinese legend telling the story of how the animals gained their position in the Zodiac by running a race.
A great idea for a children’s picture book as well as a pleasure for adults.
June 25, 2013
Once upon a time in China, the emperor decided to hold a race among all the animals. The first 12 animals to cross the finish line would be honored by having a year in the Chinese calendar named for them. The race itself was a challenging course, and some of the animals, especially the cat and the rat, had greater challenges because of their size.
Ed Young used charcoal and pastels on dark rice paper to create the illustrations, which are dark, but marvelous. The white on black text is often difficult to read. Ages 4-10.
Ed Young used charcoal and pastels on dark rice paper to create the illustrations, which are dark, but marvelous. The white on black text is often difficult to read. Ages 4-10.
March 11, 2015
This book opens with an author's note about the history and mythology of the Chinese zodiac, along with a listing of the animals, years, and their characteristics. In this version of the story, the Jade Emperor has declared a race as the deciding factor for zodiac inclusion. Best friends Cat and Rat hatch a plan together, but when Cat falls short of qualifying for the final 12, it explains why cats and rats today are enemies. The dark and loose illustrations for this book make it more difficult to read aloud to a large group but perfect for cuddling up and reading close.
February 22, 2016
I'm a Leo, so naturally I've always wondered why there is no cat in the Chinese zodiac and after reading this, now I know why. In this retelling, the Jade Emperor announces a race to fill up the 12 places on the Chinese calendar and that these 12 animals would each have a year named after them. Cat and rat, being friends, decided to work together to win a place on the calendar. Well, a rat is a rat is a rat... At the beginning of the story, there is a list of the 12 animals and their personality traits. I was born in the year of the dog. What's your sign?
March 6, 2015
Cat and Rat is an interesting, amazing recount of the Chinese zodiac folktale with stunning dark illustrations.
The story is about the cat and rat entering a race that's held by The Jade Emperor for all the animals among the land to come and race for a spot in the Chinese calendar to be named after them.
The story is about the cat and rat entering a race that's held by The Jade Emperor for all the animals among the land to come and race for a spot in the Chinese calendar to be named after them.
August 31, 2008
Children's book in reguards to the Chinese Zodiac and why the Cat did not make it into one of the 12. The pictures are well done, though I imagine some of the images would seem scary to small children, but would be fine for slightly older children.
September 28, 2011
Cat and Rat is a great way to introduce astrology signs to any classroom age. The pictures in the book are kind of dark and eerie, so I feel that you could even use this in a high school setting. I think it does a good job of providing why cats and rats do not like each other darn that race! ;)
September 11, 2012
It was cool to learn about how the Chinese calendar came to be, but I didn't think the cat and rat aspect was as interesting. I did like knowing the rat was first in the race! (I'm a rat) Though the illustrations were lovely, I think some were too dark or abstract for kids to appreciate.
February 15, 2013
You gotta feel sorry for cat. Okay version of the Chinese Zodiac. Nice illustrations, but dark and blurry illustrations are sometimes hard on my eyes.
themes: animals, cats, China, Chinese legends, Chinese Zodiac, enemies, rats
themes: animals, cats, China, Chinese legends, Chinese Zodiac, enemies, rats
April 16, 2008
Pictures were a touch dark - sometime my kids had trouble understanding them.
August 30, 2011
I would consider this book historical fiction because it is about the Chinese Zodiac. This is a book that would help children learn about the Chinese New Year.
June 2, 2012
Retelling of the legend of the Chinese zodiac. Again wonderful Ed Young illustrations to go with a cute story.
October 26, 2013
Traditional Chinese folklore written in English, with typical Ed Young style Illustration.
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April 24, 2015Picture Y71c 1998
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews