A Kitten Tale (review)

Three kittens who have never seen snow before await its winter arrival with trepidation; it's cold, it's wet, and it covers everything, so what's to love about it? A fourth kitten, more adventurous, "can't wait," and when the snow finally comes, his obvious delight in it convinces the other three to venture out and discover that snow is actually pretty cool stuff. While cat owners can attest to the believability of the trio's aversion to snow, and winter-dreading adults may heartily relate to it as well, snow-loving preschoolers may wonder why the kittens are worried about something so wonderful. It's also not clear where they've gotten their information about a season they've never experienced; the fourth kitten's concluding "I can't wait" is a bit puzzling as well, since it's in response to the other three's declaration that they'll "be right out," but it captions an illustration in which all four kittens are happily scampering in the snow together. Rohmann's crisp and cheerful illustrations, monotype prints, offer elegantly limned, dappled and striped kittens accented with chunky black outlines and subtly shaded backgrounds, and the attractive capering cats will probably override any textual difficulties readers and listeners might have. The large size, clean layout, and boldness of the illustrations also make this a good choice for a storytime selection. Despite the book's logical glitches, little ones who just "can't wait" for winter's snows and cat-loving kiddos may enjoy spending some time with this kitten quartet.