cover image Sleepy Kittens

Sleepy Kittens

Jill Leman. Tambourine Books, $14 (32pp) ISBN 978-0-688-13288-0

When these eponymous kitties ``feel like napping,'' their search for the ideal spot takes them to many household settings--``always where they shouldn't be.'' Jill Leman provides a serviceable if undistinguished text for this feline foray; however, her verses don't always scan well, and a few rhymes are uneasy (``hat'' with ``lap''; ``hearth'' with ``scarf''). Artistically, however, the book proves delicious. The radiant paintings by Martin Leman, with their clean lines, amusing groupings and brilliant palette, impart a particular vibrancy and bounce to the proceedings. Whether nestling ``all over Granny's hat'' or finding a temporary tabletop perch amid blue-and-white English pottery, this trio of tabbies makes naptime a beguiling occasion. Ages 3-up. (May)