ALA Booklist (Sun Apr 01 00:00:00 CST 2001)

There are cats, cats everywhere, lounging on the chairs, running down the hall, creating havoc in their wake. The little girl and boy in this story have had enough: Scat! But no sooner are the cats finally gone than the children want them home. Of course, the cats are happy to oblige. The manic, loosely sketched, double-spread cartoon illustrations, filled in with bright watercolors, are loaded with entertaining kitty antics that will make the story quite clear--even for children who haven't yet begun to read. For new readers or those who are ready to try reading, the four- or five-word sentences of basic vocabulary are a perfect start.

Horn Book (Mon Apr 01 00:00:00 CST 2002)

A boy and a girl bemoan the mess a pack of cats is making in their home and shoo them out, only to miss them once they are gone. The rhyming text features short sentences with a lot of repetition yet a varied and interesting vocabulary. Defined by a thin, shaky outline that echoes and emphasizes the story's chaos, the illustrations are humorous and appropriately frenetic.

Kirkus Reviews

<p>A marauding band of neighborhood cats of every color invades the house of a red-haired little girl and her tow-headed brother in this amusing easy reader from the talented Holub (The Garden That We Grew, below, etc.). The frolicking felines wreak havoc throughout the house before the children shoo them out, but then the house is a little too quiet and lonely, so the kids invite the cats back to stay under more controlled circumstances. The satisfying conclusion shows the kitties curled up asleep all over the children's bedroom: "Fat cats purr all day. Our cats here to stay." Holub uses patterned sentence structures, with rollicking rhythm, rhyming couplets, and repetition of key words providing lots of help for new readers. Delightfully loose watercolors by Davis (Tiny Goes to the Library, not reviewed, etc.) add humorous details and plenty of action, while providing picture clues and exact picture-to-text match. Thoughtful art direction varies the placement of text (appropriate for a reader at the 1.9 level) and encourages left to right flow across the pages. A model for the genre: a funny, satisfying story with solid educational underpinnings. A first choice for most libraries. (Easy reader. 5-7)</p>

School Library Journal

K-Gr 2-In simple and predictable verse, Holub describes what happens when a household is overrun by invading felines. They run through the house wreaking pure havoc on couches, flowers, lamps, and anything else they can get their paws on. Soon, however, all of the cats are shooed out, but the two children begin to miss them and set out on a search. Once the creatures are found, the siblings realize the virtues of having them in the house. So, too, do the cats begin to appreciate the joys of human companionship. While the text seems to project the benign mischief, the illustrations draw a less clear portrayal. According to Davis's watercolors, the cats are attempting to trip a child, spill food, and damage furniture-not the sort of behavior that warrants an invite back into a house. The pictures themselves are nicely detailed. However, the pale yellow, teal, and brick orange used appear washed out and don't suit the frenetic commotion taking place. With its easy vocabulary and rhyming verse, Scat, Cats! is well suited for beginning readers. Nevertheless, with few surprises and a general lack of characterization, it falls short on creativity. Readers will find little enjoyment in the destructive actions of these cats and find a bit unbelievable the children's change of heart.-Louie Lahana, New York City Public Schools Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.