City Cat by Kate Banks | Children’s Book Review

City Cat by Kate Banks, illustrated by Lauren Castillo
Published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux on November 19, 2013
Pages: 48
Format: ARC
Source: From the publisher
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A family prepares for a European vacation, and a stray cat stows away among the luggage. As the family journeys from one city to the next, the clever cat finds its own way to follow–by boat, bus, train, truck, and bike. Children will delight in cat spotting as they visit and learn about landmarks, from the Colosseum to Notre Dame Cathedral to Buckingham Palace, on this colorful tour. Rhythmically told and masterfully illustrated, City Cat will keep readers dreaming of adventure–long after the family returns home, cat in tow.

City Cat is absolutely adorable. I loved following City Cat as he traveled across Europe to places in Italy, France, Spain, England, The Netherlands, and Germany. Each page colorfully illustrates where he is, and what he’s up to. You see City Cat scaling the Colosseum walls, drinking from Parisian fountains, shopping in markets, standing at attention during the changing of the guards, and and trotting across the Bridge of Sighs. Along the way, readers learn a little about each location. There’s a picture glossary in the back that sums up the facts from each place. There’s also a map that show readers how much of Europe City Cat traversed.

The illustrations are very cute and full of character, done it what looks like a mixture of pastel and crayon. The lines whimsically scratchy, like a child could have done them but much more advanced. The artist took some liberty with the colors and the architectural renderings, but that’s what makes it fun. City Cat has the sweetest little face, as you can see on the book’s cover. I particularly love the picture in Venice of The Bridge of Sighs. I’ve been to Venice and stood in this exact spot, and this image makes me want to go back right away!

City Cat is such a cute book, is written very well, and made me want to travel to all these places again! And I love cats, so this book was just perfect for me. I know children will enjoy finding this sweet little kitty in all the pictures as they learn about Europe!