Monday, September 29, 2008

The Not-So-Random Shelf: Easy Chapter Book



I’ve been coveting the New York Review Children’s Collection for some time. Unfortunately, newer books demanded my attention. Now that I have time to discover older titles, I immediately grabbed Jenny and the Cat Club when I saw it on the easy chapter book shelves.

A collection of stories about a talking cat who joins a cat club sounds a little twee, but Esther Averill makes the stories precious and funny while avoiding an overdose of sentimentality. Jenny was based upon Averill’s own shy black cat, and Averill’s love and admiration of the feline species rings true. Although the books were published many years ago, young children would enjoy the antics of this adorable cat. Averill’s Jenny stories were enormously popular when they were first published; thanks to The New York Review Children’s Collection, new fans can rediscover the charm of the stories.

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