Tabby McTat, the Musical Cat
While American readers might struggle with the British term busker, they should quickly catch on to its meaning as it relates to a street musician, Fred, and his talented companion, Tabby McTat. Kids should also have no trouble tapping into the emotions of the pair when they become separated by circumstances. Tabby ends up with the better end of the stick in his solo career, having met a female cat that he starts a family with. Still he wonders about his former partner before the rollicking text reunites them—with a twist. This pleasant rhyming venture is illustrated by Scheffler with bright, detailed vignettes that carry the story from scene (Tabby “hiding the car keys under the mat”) to scene (“keeping the newspapers nice and flat”). A fun frolic about musical duos who aren’t quite the same without each other. Like their trademark tune, it all ends “PURRRR-fectly.” Preschool-Grade 2. --Karen Cruze