Maya and the Lost Cat

Maya has coaxed Cat (“as wet as a seal, as gray as a puddle”) off a rainy rooftop with a tin of fish; now it’s time to find the owner. As Cat tiptoes “politely” through puddles behind her, the girl, dressed in defiance of the downpour in a crown-like double pom-pom hat and a long yellow feather boa, marches door to door without success. Magerl (Rose and the Wish Thing) takes readers through the storm to three homes in which pet owners have clearly and comically over-indulged their passion for pets—rabbits, then dogs, then kitties perch everywhere. The duo finally locates Cat’s real owners—Cat is so happy to see the houseboat-dwelling couple that it springs “circus lion–style” into their arms—and Maya is rewarded with a kitten of her own, who is soon making “a small and warm rumbly purr” on the girl’s bed. With atmospheric watercolor washes and an indomitable and eccentrically styled protagonist, this is a story that even those skeptical of feline charms will find easy to love. Ages 3–7. [em](May) [/em]