Ugly Cat and Pablo are a cat-and-mouse team of best friends, and when they decide to go to the park one day, they hit the jackpot: a girl is buying their favorite foods, chicharrónes and a paleta. When their plan to make the girl drop her food goes wrong, Pablo finds himself in the girl's clutches, and she plans to make him lunch for her snake! With the help of their neighbor dog Big Mike, Ugly Cat manages to get the girl to drop Pablo, but further mishaps follow. Comical illustrations accompany the text and do a good job of showing Ugly Cat and Pablo's predicaments. The author successfully includes the serious and important topic of how to properly treat a friend, through Ugly Cat and Pablo's interactions with each other and with Big Mike. Spanish words are included on every page and reflected in street and neighborhood names. Short chapters and the bold, unique text, especially when expressing dialogue, will be sure to keep the attention of young readers.

Ugly Cat and Pablo are two tough dudes with hearts of gold and a penchant for miscommunication and (mis)adventure.Pablo is a mouse who dreams of adventure; his best friend, Ugly Cat, dreams of food. When Pablo suggests an outing to the park, Ugly Cat is hooked. After all, there is always the possibility of food in an outing to the park. Sure enough, food abounds, but then they see "THE CART." The cart sells paletas—the Spanish word for Popsicles—Ugly Cat's most favorite treat. An "easy peasy lemon squeezy" plan is hatched to obtain a paleta, and from there on, it is all a series of mishaps and misunderstandings. Knight's black-and-white illustrations energetically capture the zaniness of the caper. Each protagonist speaks in a distinctive typeface, which also adds to the visual fun. The book has a liberal sprinkling of Spanish throughout; most of it will be understood by the context, but there is enough vocabulary that will be understood only by readers familiar with Spanish to make them feel extra accomplished. (There is a glossary for those who are not.) And our heroes? Well, they come out of the escapade unharmed and ready to plot their next adventure—"as long as we go together. And as long as there are snacks." A series is born. Both chapter-book and reluctant readers will go for this one like cats to paletas. (recipe) (Fantasy. 7-10)

In a banter-filled odd-couple story, a mouse named Pablo and his feline friend Ugly Cat roam their neighborhood making trouble and eating street cart food (paletas are a particular favorite). Quintero (Gabi, a Girl in Pieces) also shows the pals- softer side: they regret riding their English bulldog friend Big Mike around like a bull, and they get a chance to apologize when Big Mike rescues them during an attempted paleta theft gone awry. The friends- keyed-up conversations, which intermingle English and Spanish, can ramble, but Ugly Cat and Pablo have abundant chemistry and personality, qualities that are further accentuated by Knight-s bold b&w cartooning. Ages 7-10. Author-s agent: Peter Steinberg, Foundry Literary + Media. Illustrator-s agent: Anne Moore Armstrong, Bright Group. (Apr.)