By James Patterson and Chris GRabenstein
Amazon rating: 4.8/5, grades 3-7; 4.6/5, grades 3-7
Good Reads: 4.26/5; 4.32/5
Common Sense Media: parents 3/5, kids 5/6 (book one only)
4Rbooks: 4/6; 4/6
306 pages, 339 pages
Synopsis:
Katt vs. Dogg
Katts and dogs don’t like each other, everyone knows that. It’s what Oscar the dog’s family has taught him his entire life. The same goes for Molly the cat. Normally they would want nothing to do with each other, but, during camping vacations with their family at the Wester Wilderness Reserve, they both become lost. Eventually they run into each other, and, after some initial reservations and general animosity, they decide they will need to make a truce to help each other survive in the wilderness.
Oscar and Molly take turns helping each other, and saving each other as they escape mountain lions, eagles, weaselboars (the camping ground if filled with magical creatures), and a raging river to finally get back home, only to find out that their families are feuding, blaming each other for their disappearance. Will they be able to work together to overcome one more obstacle?
Katt loves Dogg
Molly and Oscar find themselves back on a wilderness vacation with their families, but this time at the segregated, non-magical Eastern Wilderness Reserve where animals are not allowed to invade each other’s territories and are never expected to help each other and work together. Romaldo and Violet, Oscar and Molly’s cousins, respectively, are on the trip, too, but nobody knows they are secretly in love with each other.
One night they sneak away to be together. Molly and Oscar set off to find them and bring them home. Once again there are dangers around every corner, alley katts, squirrels, skunks, eagles, beavers, and grizzlies. Plus, a storm is coming in and the river is about to flood. Molly and Oscar must work together again, even after learning that their families have a long standing family feud going on, but they will also use the help of many other animals to save the lost love birds and get them home before it’s too late.
Parental Guidance: medium
Lot of scatological humor: pee, poop, fart, lick, and butt sniffing jokes.
Molly and Oscar find themselves in many dangerous situations.
There is consistent name calling, and put-downs between Oscar and Molly,
at first, and between their families.
Prejudice between the species is common.
Recommendation:
These are fun, silly stories with positive life messages. They are humorous, more than just the scatological humor. There are inside jokes and puns that adult will enjoy, too. The main theme of both books is overcoming prejudice, overcoming bias, and working together to achieve a goal that’s best for everyone. The second book also highlight how much of the prejudice in people is learned behavior from family and society.
The chapters are short, and the illustrations are excellent, so it should be an accessible book for reluctant readers. It could be a fun family read with mom and dad. Teachers should be careful about using this in class because of the scatological, juvenile humor. How well would that go over in the school’s neighborhood? Most parents will probably be okay, but there are some who would object.
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