ALA Booklist (Mon Apr 01 00:00:00 CDT 2019)

A girl embarks on writing a story about her kitten, but the kitten, who can talk, interrupts to insist that the story be about a tiger instead. The girl gives in and continues, but as the story grows, the kitten keeps suggesting improvements to give it more "pep" and "pizzazz." After the girl uses her art supplies to create a jungle playmat in which to set their story, the book we are reading becomes the story they are writing. From that point on, each spread features the jungle setting, with the kitten walking through, fully immersed in the ever-growing adventure. The girl makes more and more exciting additions pers, hyenas, rockets, robots, and sharks til it finally becomes too much for the kitten, who runs and hides. Woodruff's mixed-media illustrations, done in watercolor, colored pencil, pen, and ink, work well both for the quiet playroom and the wild jungle setting. Readers will love following the collaboration between the girl and her kitten in this thought- and art-provoking book.

Horn Book (Thu Aug 01 00:00:00 CDT 2019)

This is a story about a kitten

Kirkus Reviews

A child writes a story about a pet—with some help.The unnamed protagonist is clearly a creative type who loves this little tiger kitten. Pictured on the title page is evidence of a previous story as well as two larger than life-size portraits of her kitten. Pencils, crayons, and craft supplies spill from a nearby bookcase. Sprawled on the flowered rug, the child begins a new saga. Initial efforts are rejected by the cat, who demands to be referred to as a tiger and advocates for more exciting exploits than chasing yarn and drinking milk. Inspired, the young author is soon wielding watercolors to create a dark jungle, dripping with snakes. Initially enthusiastic, the kitten finds the next few additions a bit intimidating and soon enough declares that it is all "TOO MUCH!" The appealing artwork was created using a variety of media, resulting in a nicely varied, upbeat look. Round eyes and heads, simply drawn shapes, and black outlines give the pictures a cheerful, cartoony feel. Shifts in perspective allow young listeners to become immersed in the story within a story, while subtle details ground the adventure in the cozy real-life setting. Speech balloons and type colors clearly indicate who is speaking in the brief conversational text. The child has pale skin and straight, black hair.Lively and amusing, this story about making stories will likely find eager listeners—and may just inspire some writing projects, too. (Picture book. 5-8)