Reviewed by Genna, age 10

In the book, A Lesson My Cat Taught Me, a girl named Jennifer and her mother find a vary friendly and abandoned cat.They bring it home and Jennifer teaches her some tricks.

My favorite part is when Uno [ the abandoned cat ] does tricks. My second favorite part is when they adopted Mr.Tickles. It was very exciting because Jennifer was getting her first cat. It was sweet too because Mr. Tickles licked her through the cage at the animal shelter.

My favorite character is Mr.Tickles because

he was vary supportive by licking Uno after she does her tricks.  

Jennifer makes friends with a disabled girl after her new cat showed her that being disabled is not bad or scary. I would have done the same thing Jennifer did if I were in her situation because I don’t like it when people make fun of others.

The cover illustration is special because it is very beautiful and colorful, like a painting. My favorite illustration inside the book was the one that Mr.Tickles was kissing Uno.

Kim’s Review:

It should be noted that Genna is a reluctant reader and any book that keeps her attention, is a good one in my mind. “A Lesson my Cat Taught Me” is a short read. Genna was able to finish it in one sitting, which gave her a sense of accomplishment. We are both cat-lovers and the anecdotes of Mr. Tickles and Uno were delightful.

There are many reasons to recommend this book in the classroom. It’s short length, but high interest would make it appropriate for all levels of readers. The story has a gentle lesson about bullying, and disabilities, without being preachy and it includes many facts about caring for cats, facts that can be used in lesson planning.

All in all, this book packs a lot of punch into a small package. I would recommend it to reluctant readers.