REVIEW: What Will FAT CAT Sit On?

Guys, I have a serious question.  What WILL Fat Cat sit on?  I mean really?  In the book, Fat Cat will only sit on one particular thing.  But my experience is that cats--fat or skinny-are prone to sitting on just about anything that will stay still long enough.  Especiaaaaaaaaaalllllllllllllyyyyyyyyyy mmmmmmmyyyyyyyyyyyyy comput33423er keeeeeeeeeyyyyyyyyboarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrd.erklwjekn;kdjeksj;29.


Thomas, J.  (2007).  What Will Fat Cat Sit On?  New York:  Harcourt, Inc.

9780152060510


Appetizer:  Using a repetitive question and answer format, What Will Fat Cat Sit On? asks readers just that.  Since the questions are all whether or not the cat will sit on certain animals, the book also helps young kids to work on identifying cows, chickens, pigs, mice, etc. and the noises they make.

The illustrations are simple and fun.  Thomas does an excellent job of showing the characters' worry or joy in their expressions.

As the reader is asked whether fat cat will sit on the various animals, the answer is always no.  While kids will probably love shouting out "NOOOOooooooooOOOOOO!" and all of noes do provide tension for a possible "yes" at the end.  As a preschooler, I would have totally wanted to yell out yes to Fat Cat sitting on a cow, chicken or pig.  While a teacher can negotiate those moments for kids who are fans of the absurd like I was, it was a little frustrating that the text always disagreed with what I wanted it to say.


Dinner Conversation:

"Will Fat Cat sit on...the cow?"

"No! Fat Cat will not sit on the cow!"

"Sit on the pig!  Sit on the pig!"


To Go with the Meal:


Oh, Jan Thomas, you are so good at writing simple stories that will encourage young little children to interact with stories physically.  This would be a good book for a read aloud story.  Children can repeatedly shout back "yes" or "no" to the text.  Plus a teacher can easily go off the script of the story and ask more questions, like whether a cat will sit on a skunk, in a bath or on a lap, etc.  A teacher can also use this book as an opportunity to encourage kids to describe some of the places where they have seen cats and other animals sit.

I could see some teachers freaking out about the use of the adjective "fat" in the cat's name.  It could lead to a teaching moment in which a teacher will have to remind wee little kids that it's not nice to call one another fat.

It's also worth noting that Jan Thomas has a very simple website that reflects the illustrations of her picturebooks that a teacher could encourage new internet users to navigate.  (But at the same time, the site does lack information for a blogger might want to construct a useful author bio.  Just saying....)


Tasty Rating:  !!!