Thumpy Feet

PreS-Gr 1—"Here comes Thumpy Feet!" This goggle-eyed sprawly cat exuberantly eats, plays, and naps while portraying the exact opposite of typically aloof feline elegance. He appears on white pages, drawn with expressive gestural black outlines, with only a food bowl, mouse, and ball of yarn to accompany him. After readers are introduced to Thumpy, "MMMMMMmmmmmm Foodie food!" is followed by three pages of "Smacky mouth/Smacky smacky/smack smacky smack" and three more pages of "Licky lick!" Each new activity is described by one word repeated and varied several times. Undoubtedly, some will enjoy acting out Thumpy's day, but the joy found in the study of feline movement and personality is not quite enough to carry readers through to the end. After eating, grooming, playing, and napping, Thumpy discovers a ball of yarn and abruptly frolics off into the endpapers.—Anna Haase Krueger, Ramsey County Library, White Bear Lake, MN