Inside Cat (Brendan Wenzel)

He’s amazing. Buy all his books. Smart, witty, inventive, beautiful.

My 6-year-old adores this book. It’s easy enough for her to read, but we like to read it together because each time we do, we find new things to talk about. The illustrations are imaginative and fun and spark wonderful conversations.

I love love love reading this book to my 2 year old. He bobs up and down as we go, and wants me to read it over and over. So cute and simple for him to fallow.

I have been collecting award winning Children's books some the 1980s. This is one of my favorites. The book is playful. The illustrations captivating. The word play is great to teach kiddos how to read. There is a most important lesson for adults hidden in this book as well. It reminds one that our "world" may seem perfect, familiar and we may know it all...but no matter how old we get or how wise we think we are...there is always more to behold of we just look for it!

Well as the title said great illustrations. As for the story. Not so much. I think it might be a good book for the 1 to 3 year old groupI bought it for my 3.5 year old grand daughter but frankly it has been a long time since she has had read to her or asked for a book with this simple a storyWhat I might do is get her 6 yr old sister to read it to her.Not sure I would recommend this book as there are a lot of books out thereI can just see my six year old grand daughter asking what happened to the house on fire and why do we not see it in the end? And why did they stay in their house with a big fire so close?

Can you resist a picture book with a hilarious (and beautifully designed) cover? I certainly can’t. All I had to see were the titular cat’s enormous eyes and the title (Inside Cat), and I was hooked. Brendan Wenzel’s latest picture book is ART – and it’s funny, charming, original, and thought-provoking too!Inside Cat views the world from, well, inside. It wonders and wanders all day long, looking out of windows of all kinds, at all sorts of things. The world of inside is pale and colorless – and in contrast, outside is vibrant, interesting, and stranger than strange. Inside Cat might think it knows everything there is to know from observing the world, but of course human readers know that the outside is wild, and distance changes your view of everything. In this witty and highly detailed picture book, author-illustrator Wenzel will charm readers of all ages with humor, language, and of course, art.As an avid reader (since always), and now as an English teacher, I’m interested in the ways that we play with language and storytelling in primarily visual mediums like graphic novels and picture books. Wenzel has written a text that would read as a charming poem independent of the illustrations. Words rhyme throughout, and Wenzel employs alliteration, repetition, and many action verbs. There’s also a strong thread of humor, in both the look of the book (Inside Cat’s googly eyes are too much!), and in the ways that Inside Cat identifies elements of the world, both inside and out. Many of the jokes are not explicit in the text, but illustrated (literally!) in the ways that Inside Cat thinks, due to its limited frame of reference and point of view.Wenzel displays true skill in navigating the delicate balancing act between writing a fast-paced story that appeals to impatient children, and creating a book that those same children will want to return to over and over again, and find new stories and details in each time. Wenzel accomplishes this in part by filling more white space with each subsequent page spread. While Wenzel’s economical use of text could help to pick up the reading pace, there’s so much to see on each page that it’s tough to make this a truly quick read. And really, why rush something so fun and lovely?The art: let’s talk about it. Wenzel uses a variety of mediums, both physical and virtual, and the only thing I have to say about all of them is that they blend so well that this book feels all of a piece. The outdoors is depicted in full color, and indoors and Inside Cat’s imaginings are pastel-light outlines on a white background. There’s lots of detail, but much of it can be pushed to the background to consider on a 2nd, or 5th, or 500th re-read. Inside Cat’s eyes are the feature that stand out the most, echoing the importance of the visual to the cat’s experience and knowledge. I could go on… but by this point I hope you’ve realized you should go on and buy or borrow it yourself to enjoy what is truly a fun time.In all, Inside Cat is both an exploration and a thought- and story-starter. It will have young readers and adults alike creating new adventures for Inside Cat, and wondering, wandering, gazing, and gaping at the world in a whole new way.Recommended for: small children with big imaginations (little ones who liked Not A Box and other books that foster creative thinking will get a kick out of this!), fans of books with a twist at the end, and anyone who appreciates detailed illustrations, humor, and text working in harmony to create exceptional picture books.

What a fun book. I read this book a couple times as I couldn’t quite figure out if I was fully getting into the rhythm of it. I felt the pace got clunky a few times in the text while at other times, the flow was effortless. The story made sense; it was the rhythm of the words that felt off. I liked the illustrations, as they were very interesting to look at. Inside Cat’s observes the world from a variety of different perspectives (sizes, sights, positions, etc.). Inside Cat sees all as he has a wide variety of windows to look out and he’s looking, looking at everything!The illustrations are very entertaining and unique. I liked the way the illustrations were created. The paper had the appearance of many different layers of print, stacked on top: of each other. I thought this was a cute book. 4 stars

Caldecott Honor winner Brendan Wenzel continues to amaze me with his incredibly stunning and thought-provoking stories! This inventive tale follows a cat who sees the world through the windows of his home. The clever illustrations brightly display what is happening outdoors while muted colors represent the cat’s imaginative musings of the outside world. Just when the cat believes he knows all there is to know about life, a door opens and his whole perspective changes.I literally love everything about this book. The lyrical prose is a joy to read aloud while the creative illustrations are a feast for the eyes and the ending is just perfect! Oh, and just wait until you see the clever under-the-jacket reveal and end papers!