“Picture book artists tend to get most of the glory in the picture-book partnership, but a truly fine picture-book text is a thing of beauty in its own right, achieving things that pictures can’t (even as the art achieves things that the text can’t) rather than functioning merely as punctuation or captioning. Though it’s a demanding format, with its need for compactness and for partnership, there are those that excel at it: Margaret Wise Brown, Arthur Yorinks, Jacqueline Briggs Martin, to name a few. Now Terry Farish demonstrates herself an exciting new talent in the genre with this casually told yet tender tale about the prickly friendship between an old man and his cat’.

There are plenty of youngsters who will be drawn to the notion of living with just a beloved pet for company. There are also likely quite a few kids in similar human relationships, where they’re grumped at by somebody undemonstrative who’s genuinely fond of them nonetheless, and this story may help explain that cranky commentary can hide unspoken affection. Even kids who don’t fall into those categories will appreciate the rhythmic storytelling, the lively individuality, and the irascible yet endearing relationship between these memorable characters.”

Bulletin for the Center of Children’s Books Blue Ribbon Winner

A writing prompt for readers:

The Cat Who Liked Potato Soup, in pictures.  Look at the details that illustrator Barry Root included in the pictures he drew for the book.  Now, write the story that you see in the pictures.

The Cat Who Liked Potato Soup Reader’s Guide