Scarlatti’s Cat

Lachenmeyer’s (The Boo! Book) faux biography of a famous composer hits an odd off-note. When Pulcinella, the butterscotch cat that belongs to 18th-century Italian composer Domenico Scarlatti, lands on the master’s harpsichord in pursuit of a mouse, Scarlatti discovers that the cat is as good a composer as he is. “Scarlatti started to push her off, but then he heard the melody she was playing. He was amazed.” He sets down the cat’s composition (there is, in fact, a Scarlatti piece nicknamed the “Cat fugue”) then tests Pulcinella again the next morning—and she plays even more beautifully. Is Scarlatti pleased? He is not. “What will become of me?” he cries. Then he packs the cat into a basket and gives her away. Even if it were true (biographies date the “Cat fugue” nickname to the 19th century), there’s little to laugh at in the image of silencing artistry that threatens one’s success—though it does, perhaps, say something about human nature. Beccia’s (Louisa May’s Battle) pale, waxworklike figures and baroque flourishes create a distinctive atmosphere and ensure that readers’ loyalties will remain with Pulcinella. Ages 4–9. (Mar.)