cover image The Maine Coon’s Haiku: And Other Poems for Cat Lovers

The Maine Coon’s Haiku: And Other Poems for Cat Lovers

Michael J. Rosen, illus. by Lee White. Candlewick, $17.99 (56p) ISBN 978-0-7636-6492-3

Rosen and White follow The Cuckoo’s Haiku and The Hound Dog’s Haiku with 20 haikus devoted to cats, paired with grainy, atmospheric illustrations. Rosen highlights Russian Blues, Birmans, Abyssinians, and more as the book transitions between indoor and outdoor scenes with cats sprawling languidly, on moonlit prowls, tiptoeing through flowers, or in mid-spring. White’s backdrops include the edge of a swimming pool (“sun-baked umbrella/ iced-tea glass sweats, pools—first drip/ wakes the sleeping cat”); a village veranda, which serves as a perch for a Manx to gaze over apricot rooftops; and a country store (“outside the old store/ more strays sun as the screen door/ bangs—bangs shut, again”). Each exquisitely crafted poem and image captures the personalities of the cats, the diversity of settings, and the quiet magic of each moment. Ages 6–9. Illustrator’s agent: Paul Rodeen, Rodeen Literary Management. (Mar.)