Cynthia Rylant's Henry and Mudge books are a popular series about a
vivacious boy and his big, affectionate dog. She has another winning
pair of characters in the Mr. Putter and Tabby books, which are about a
middle-aged man who lives alone with his pet cat. In Mr. Putter and Tabby Feed the Fish,
Mr. Putter decides to get a little more company in the form of three
fish. He always enjoys watching them at the store, so owning them ought
to be even better. Except that he didn't count on one thing: Tabby's
fish problem.
This 40-page book is broken up into four easy-to-read sections: The Fish Store, Bat, Bat. Bat. Bat. and So Relaxed.
They take us from the trip to the store on which Mr. Putter buys the
fish to his decision to give them up due to Tabby's unrelenting
infatuation with them. He tries to discourage the mesmerizing hold the
fish have over Tabby by covering the bowl first with a pillowcase and
then with a bucket - both of which seem like they ought to suffocate the
fish, but they don't seem adversely affected - but his best efforts are
to no avail. Tabby is addicted.
While I enjoy Sucie Stevenson's Henry and Mudge
illustrations, I'm even fonder of the pictures here, which are by
Arthur Howard. They seem less sketchy, with more attention to detail and
rich, watery coloration. Mr. Putter is a delightful fellow, with chubby
cheeks, a little mustache, a pair of glasses perched on his bulbous
nose and tufts of hair sprouting out of his mostly bald head. Tabby,
meanwhile, is a bundle of curiosity with white and orange stripes and
large blue eyes with black pin-prick pupils. Throughout this book, he is
on edge, his tail and whiskers a-quiver, his eyes filled with
hypnotizing visions of golden, bug-eyed fish with fancy fins.
Though there are no children in this story, Tabby's fish-inspired antics
and Mr. Putter's flummoxed response to them should get kids chuckling.
Mr. Putter and Tabby are another dynamic Rylant duo, and adding a few
fish into the mix only makes them more entertaining.
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