Barn Cat: A Counting Book

ANNOTATION

Because she's looking for something special, the great barn cat notices but shows no interest in the activities of the animals which can be counted around her.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Barn cat pays no attention to the parade of crickets, swallows, puppies, and butterflies from 1 to 10 that passes by. What is she looking for? Young readers will delight in the up-close hand-colored woodcuts that give a cat's-eye view of the world.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

Azarian's exceedingly handsome woodcuts tether Saul's lyrical counting book to a pastoral setting, where a well-fed tabby cat serenely ignores the barnyard activity that bustles around her. One grasshopper, two crickets, three butterflies and so on, up to 10 sparrows, parade past the disinterested puss, to the recurring refrain of "Barn cat at the red barn door,/ Barn cat, what are you looking for?" At last, the goal of her patient vigil is revealed: the cat's mistress appears, to pour her a saucer of milk. Saul's (Someplace Else) rhyming text is simplicity itself ("Four gray swallows in the air?/ Barn cat looks but doesn't care./ On curving wings they dive and chase./ They wheel and swoop. Away they race!"), and her measured cadences are attuned to a read-aloud audience. An expressive blend of graceful lines and precise hand-coloring enhances Azarian's (A Symphony for the Sheep) sturdy woodcuts, which lend a timeless quality to the pages of this most agreeable picture book. Ages 2-6. (Sept.)

Children's Literature

In rhymed couplets Saul takes us on the cat's search around the barn, observing and counting the insects and animals, until she finds her bowl of milk. This combination of simple text and counting book is illustrated with Azarian's unique, hand-colored woodcut prints, which she produces on a nineteenth-century hand press. Her creatures and scenes have chiseled textures that stand out on the pages as readers or listeners count them out.

School Library Journal

PreS-Above the first page of text, a large mottled-coated cat stands waiting-but for what? Each double-page spread suggests a possibility: is it one green grasshopper, two brown crickets, or three black-and-orange butterflies? In each case, these creatures "jump out of sight," "leap away in one great hop," or "wave their wings and fly away" while the cat languidly watches. Then, after 10 sparrows make their appearance with little interest from the feline, a young girl appears with a pitcher of milk; and Barn Cat finally has what she's been waiting for all along. The carefully planted suspense will not be lost on young listeners, and Saul's inclusion of color and behavior in the rhymes adds further dimension that adults can use to good advantage. Azarian enhances all this with large, exacting, hand-colored woodcuts that invite careful inspection. Barn Cat's changing expressions are particularly noteworthy. Many counting books are available, but the potential here makes this collaboration one that should not be overlooked.-Barbara Elleman, Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI

Kirkus Reviews

This appealing look at garden, meadow, and farmyard creatures, as seen through the eyes of a curious barn cat, gives the tried-and-true preschool favoritesþanimals and countingþa fresh new landscape. "Barn cat at the red barn door/Barn cat, what are you looking for?" The cat spies one grasshopper, two crickets, three butterflies, and so on, up to ten sparrows at the feeder. The lazy barn cat appears to be unmoved, even by seven tempting birds in a nest and nine chicks in a line. The repetition builds tension; just as readers are convinced that barn cat is finally ready to pounce, she finds what she's been searching forþa bowl of milk being poured at the kitchen door. Azarian's friendly woodcuts, hand-colored in country-fresh hues, give a novel meaning to summer on the farm. (Picture book. 3-7)