Hilary McKay (Binny for Short) once again crafts an utterly charming chapter book for newly independent readers, her third in the series that began with Lulu and the Duck in the Park and Lulu and the Dog from the Sea.
When her parents go on vacation, they leave Lulu and her cousin Mellie safely in the care of their grandmother Nan. All is well until a large, mysterious bag appears on Lulu's doorstep, which begins to... snore. Lulu opens the bag to find an enormous orange cat, who stretches, purrs and runs off. "Good," says Nan. "Ran away! Good!" Nan may not be an animal lover, but Lulu certainly is. With their hamsters, fish, rabbits, a parrot and two dogs, Nan is certain her granddaughters already have enough pets. But Lulu and Mellie set off to look for the runaway stray. Lulu knows that this new snoring, purring orange cat will need a good home.
McKay is a genius at creating fun-loving, caring and original families who take their pets seriously. Sticking to age-appropriate sentence structure and vocabulary, McKay conveys a warm and thoroughly appealing early chapter book. The adventures begin immediately, and the fun doesn't let up until the last page. Lulu's mysterious cat has an unusual habit, which helps Lulu and Mellie to simply follow the feline's trail. Along the way, a new cat lover is born, and all ends peacefully, with a lovely surprise. --Lynn Becker, host of Book Talk, the monthly online discussion of children's books for the Society of Children's Book Writers & Illustrators