Baby Cakes

Written by Theo Heras

Illustrated by Renné Benoit

Pajama Press

978-1-77278-030-7

24 pp.

Ages 1-4

October 2017

If Baby Cakes don't sound yummy enough, wait until you see Renné Benoit's illustrations of the children and kitten at play baking.  They are sweet and delightful and wholly scrummy.

From Baby Cakes 

by Theo Heras

 illus. by Renné Benoit

An older sister and little brother, with tuxedo kitten in tow, don their aprons, gather their ingredients and baking utensils and set to work.  Of course there are a few mishaps–there always are in the kitchen–of spilled ingredients but the two little ones seem to know what they are doing.  Measure, sprinkle, cream, wash, wash again, pour, blend, mix, fill and wait.  Except for brief appearances of a parent's hands to help out with a spill and to put the cupcakes in the oven, this story is that of the labours of the children and the kitten.  As should be, there is a tasty treat to imbibe in at tea time.

From Baby Cakes 

by Theo Heras 

illus. by Renné Benoit

Theo Heras, whose first book with Pajama Press Hat On, Hat Off (2016) was also illustrated by the wonderful Renné Benoit, reintroduces the sister and brother, slightly older now and able to take on a baking project with a little help from a parent. But Baby Cakes is still written for the very young, with Pajama Press' trademark padded cover and sturdy pages, and large bold font and simple sentences of only a few words.  I suspect that Baby Cakes could be the first book young children will be able to read themselves as the repeated readings by an older child or adult will enable them to remember the words and learn to match the visual with the sounds.  Learning to bake and read in one charming book.

But like so many picture books, it is the artwork that will captivate children and adults.  Renné Benoit's illustrations capture the innocence and earnestness of the very young and their efforts to undertake what must seem a monumental task.  The seriousness of their efforts does not take away from their delight in the work and the surprises that happen.  With a much-loved kitten, the children are bonded to their task and to each other, cooperating in their efforts and sharing in the fruits of their labours.  It's a warm scene of family that I wish could be experienced in every household.  Hopefully, Baby Cakes will compel that to happen in more.  With the recipes for chocolate and vanilla cupcakes, as well as vanilla frosting, on the endpapers, everyone and anyone can assist young children in baking some yummy delights, with or without a kitten to help.

From Baby Cakes 

by Theo Heras

 illus. by Renné Benoit

Kabungo

by Rolli

Illustrated by Milan Pavlović

Groundwood Books

978-1-55498-804-4

173 pp.

Ages 7-10

April 2016

It’s a different world when your best friend is a cavegirl but Beverly is the very best of friends to Kabungo who lives in a cave on Main Street in Star City.  Beverly has learned much of Kabungo’s vocabulary–sungo for night, sunup for day, sniff for follow and Belly for Beverly–but she still wants to teach Kabungo about living in the “civilized” world. Whether it’s teaching Kabungo the alphabet, or that it’s wrong to steal, Beverly does her best, often with a grain of salt and a whole lot of sugary fun.

I would have told her that flea powder wasn’t for eating, but I never tell anyone anything more than a hundred times.  It’s my personal rule. (pg. 13)

Kabungo, the book, is divided into eight chapters with an odd assortment of titles–Shark Toofs, Targur, Vibbles, Fundersticks, Himplepotamus, Flimsy Tree, Hopping Bird Day and Trigger Cheats!–that play on Kabungo’s ability to anunciate English words because of a scarcity of teeth.  (For a bit of fun, say the chapter titles aloud and see if you can discern what Kabungo is really trying to say.) Each chapter is an anecdote in the story of Kabungo and Beverly’s friendship.  From Kabungo’s desire to make jewelry with teeth scavenged at a retirement home, to her struggling with certain letters of the alphabet Beverly is teaching her, her affection for her new kitten Bun, a visit to Miss VeDore’s mansion and pumpkin field, or Kabungo’s knack for creating a family from an odd assortment of people and branches she comes upon, it's all in day's friendship for these two.

Regardless of how much she seems to understand, Kabungo is an astute and absorbing young girl of ten, and a delight to meet in Rolli’s Kabungo (okay, maybe not in person, as she does have fleas and isn’t into personal hygiene or etiquette).  Same goes for Beverly whose perceptive observations, some via her Aunt Ev and Uncle George, will serve her well in life and her friendship with Kabungo, as well as others who heed her wisdom.

Apologies are heavy.  They’re boulders. It’s hard work pushing a boulder, even if it’s just across the room. A lot of people give up halfway and lose a friend forever. (pg. 85)

As my Uncle George always says, sooner or later, even impossible takes a nap. (pg. 27-8)

Very wise for a ten-year-old.

Rolli has written a witty story for the pre-middle grade reader for whom the early reader may be too easy and MG books too mature.  It’s comical in its word play, likeable in its characters–Kabungo, Beverly, Mr. and Mrs. Gobshaw, Miss VeDore, and more–and entertaining in its short stories. Having a best friend who’s a cavegirl makes for a world that is hardly boring. And, contrary to her teacher who thinks Beverly’s definition of boredom– “when everything turns out like you expected” (pg. 56)– to be incorrect, I think Beverly knows exactly what boring is and accurately recognizes that her friendship with Kabungo is anything but predictable.

Nat the Cat Can Sleep Like That

Written by Victoria Allenby

Illustrated by Tara Anderson

Pajama Press

978-1-927485-52-1

32 pp.

Ages 2-5

September, 2013

Reviewed from unbound galley proofs

The premise behind Nat the Cat Can Sleep Like That may appear obvious to the reader.  Nat the Cat is the older, orange tabby in a household in which a small black and white kitten lives.  While Nat the Cat has no animosity for the young feline, he does what many older cats love to do: sleep.  But the little one does what many kittens love to do: play.  No matter what kind of play the kitten gets up to–with balls, in dresser drawers, on a skateboard–Nat the Cat just keeps on sleeping nearby.

But that isn't the story as told. Victoria Allenby's rhyming text takes the reader through a day in the lives of the two cats beginning with their people (only their feet seen) leaving for the day.  Tara Anderson's cheerful cats then engage in their favourite activities, with the text firmly focused on Nat's sleeping.  But everything changes when it's dark and no one is around to watch the two.  A final twist in the story shows that the two felines are destined to live happily together.

As a household which recently introduced a pair of two-month-old brothers to our ten-year-old grey tabby, I know the relentless play in which the little ones engage.  Thank goodness they have each other to chase, to play fight, to clean, to poke and with whom to snuggle.  But when our older cat comes in from outside, they are all over her.  Their actions shout, "Gracie's here! Gracie's here!  Hi, Grace! Wanna play, Gracie?!"  (As much as I despise frequent exclamation marks, our two kittens always speak with this punctuation.  It's a kitten thing.)  Similarly Victoria Allenby affectionately shows us that this story is all about Nat the Cat and the nameless kitten showing their preferences as generational, never based in animosity.  The lighthearted text is more restful when focused on Nat's sleeping predilections, but its overall whimsy is reflected well in the playfulness of Tara Anderson's illustrations.  From the kitten's shenanigans with a star wand or a fish on a string, Nat the Cat contentedly sleeps on (though likely to enlist his people into rubbing his belly, I think, when they're around).

Seems Tara Anderson does a lot of cover art, though her illustrations from Nat the Cat Can Sleep Like That and The Stripey Cat (by Norene Smiley, Fitzhenry & Whiteside, 2007) demonstrate her knack for felines. Coupled with Victoria Allenby's simple but zippy rhyming story, Nat the Cat Can Sleep Like That is a delightful read, perfect for getting your own little ones to bed, whether they be human or feline.