I'm absolutely fond of cats and let's be honest: who isn't? I'm also really into picture books, so whenever I see a picture book about cats, I just need to get it. A couple of weeks ago my local bookstore had a giant sale and I saw the Dutch translation of They All Saw a Cat by Brendan Wenzel.* I hadn't previously heard of this author or this book, but the subject and the gorgeous illustrations triggered me and I decided to buy the book, which turned out to be a great decision.
Brendan Wenzel is an American illustrator/author/artist who has illustrated several books written by other authors, but for this book he himself is listed as the author. All of Brendan Wenzel's art and illustrations revolve around animals of all shapes and forms. Wenzel holds nature close to his heart and works together with all kinds of organizations to try and conserve nature. They All Saw a Cat is no exception to his passion for nature and animals.
The book tells the story of a cat who leaves his house and explores the world around him. During his trip through the outside the world, the cat encounters all kinds of animals and all these animals see the cat differently. The reader is therefore not only following the adventure of the cat, but is also going on a visual journey consisting of all the different kinds of cat that are perceived by all the different animals. The way a snake can see a cat is a lot different from the way a flee can see a cat. This book helps readers develop that sense of perspective.
The different animals see the cat in the way that they see the entire world, which leads to a variety of illustration styles in the book. Wenzel has chosen a variety of animals and therefore creates a nice catalog of different illustration styles. The bumblebee sees the cat as a collections of colored dots, while the skunks sees the cat only in black and white and the fish sees the cat distorted through the water. This way the reader is allowed to grow familiar with different ways to draw things and this might even be a great starting point to develop a sense of cultural and artistic preferences because of the nods towards artistic styles in the book. The differences in perspective are also addressed in the book, as the bird sees the cat from far away and not necessarily as a threat, while the cat is a lot bigger and a lot more dangerous from the mouse's point of view. This might give the reader a sense of the importance of perspective.
Because of these different lenses through which the reader of the book has to look, it is hard to pinpoint the style of Wenzel. However, the main part of the illustrations remind me a bit of the famous illustrations by Eric Carle. Both seem to use a variety of techniques which results in very playful and very textured illustrations with a lot of shades of more or less the same color, really deepening the illustrations. Wenzel's animals are larger than life and really speak to the imagination of the reader.
The illustrations are accompanied by small sentences to tell the reader whose eyes it is through which we are looking at the cat. After a couple of pages the same sentence is repeated that tells the reader that the cat is exploring the world. This repetition gives the book a nice flow and structure, that seems to make it more than just a collection of different cats.
What I really admire in this book is the way that some fairly philosophical questions are addressed without the book being preachy or going over the heads of the children. In the end all the different animals' versions of the cat come together in one big cat that is nothing short of a fantastical creature. This could spark a conversation about different points of view on one and the same thing, but the illustration is fun enough to look at without dealing with this difficult topic. Another example is the end of the book, where the question is posed how the cat would view itself. Again a great conversation starter, but thanks to the funny illustration just an entertaining ending as well. And while the book is about a cat, it could serve as a way to teach children about self-confidence as well.
So, They All Saw a Cat is a feast for the eye and might get the young readers acquainted with different illustration styles and is informative about the way different animals see the world as well. Moreover, besides being an entertaining story, the book could serve as a starting point for discussions about more meaningful topics.
*The translation is obviously different from the original. In this review I have focused mainly on the illustrations of the book and whenever I encounter the original text, I will do a comparison of the two.
Brendan Wenzel is an American illustrator/author/artist who has illustrated several books written by other authors, but for this book he himself is listed as the author. All of Brendan Wenzel's art and illustrations revolve around animals of all shapes and forms. Wenzel holds nature close to his heart and works together with all kinds of organizations to try and conserve nature. They All Saw a Cat is no exception to his passion for nature and animals.
The book tells the story of a cat who leaves his house and explores the world around him. During his trip through the outside the world, the cat encounters all kinds of animals and all these animals see the cat differently. The reader is therefore not only following the adventure of the cat, but is also going on a visual journey consisting of all the different kinds of cat that are perceived by all the different animals. The way a snake can see a cat is a lot different from the way a flee can see a cat. This book helps readers develop that sense of perspective.
The different animals see the cat in the way that they see the entire world, which leads to a variety of illustration styles in the book. Wenzel has chosen a variety of animals and therefore creates a nice catalog of different illustration styles. The bumblebee sees the cat as a collections of colored dots, while the skunks sees the cat only in black and white and the fish sees the cat distorted through the water. This way the reader is allowed to grow familiar with different ways to draw things and this might even be a great starting point to develop a sense of cultural and artistic preferences because of the nods towards artistic styles in the book. The differences in perspective are also addressed in the book, as the bird sees the cat from far away and not necessarily as a threat, while the cat is a lot bigger and a lot more dangerous from the mouse's point of view. This might give the reader a sense of the importance of perspective.
Because of these different lenses through which the reader of the book has to look, it is hard to pinpoint the style of Wenzel. However, the main part of the illustrations remind me a bit of the famous illustrations by Eric Carle. Both seem to use a variety of techniques which results in very playful and very textured illustrations with a lot of shades of more or less the same color, really deepening the illustrations. Wenzel's animals are larger than life and really speak to the imagination of the reader.
The illustrations are accompanied by small sentences to tell the reader whose eyes it is through which we are looking at the cat. After a couple of pages the same sentence is repeated that tells the reader that the cat is exploring the world. This repetition gives the book a nice flow and structure, that seems to make it more than just a collection of different cats.
What I really admire in this book is the way that some fairly philosophical questions are addressed without the book being preachy or going over the heads of the children. In the end all the different animals' versions of the cat come together in one big cat that is nothing short of a fantastical creature. This could spark a conversation about different points of view on one and the same thing, but the illustration is fun enough to look at without dealing with this difficult topic. Another example is the end of the book, where the question is posed how the cat would view itself. Again a great conversation starter, but thanks to the funny illustration just an entertaining ending as well. And while the book is about a cat, it could serve as a way to teach children about self-confidence as well.
So, They All Saw a Cat is a feast for the eye and might get the young readers acquainted with different illustration styles and is informative about the way different animals see the world as well. Moreover, besides being an entertaining story, the book could serve as a starting point for discussions about more meaningful topics.
*The translation is obviously different from the original. In this review I have focused mainly on the illustrations of the book and whenever I encounter the original text, I will do a comparison of the two.
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