Review by Booklist Review
A girl wearing black shorts, suspenders, and a yellow T-shirt--and who stands no taller than a pencil--lives like a Borrower in the modern, middle-class home of some unseen family. She spends her day adventuring around--running on a toilet paper roll, gathering lost knickknacks, diving in a glass of water--until she's interrupted by the "scary shadow" of a housecat. A tense meeting turns into a fast friendship, and the adventuring resumes. Author-illustrator Levi presents a loose narrative that seems mostly interested in a tone and perspective that captures the experience of a child left alone to play. The joyful pencil illustrations are colored mainly by pleasant yellows and greens, giving a springy exuberance to the shenanigans on display, and the partnership between the protagonist and the cat is all love, fueled by fun. Young listeners will delight in the miniature perspective, while adult readers may feel the bittersweet tug of childhood nostalgia.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
In a story reminiscent of The Borrowers, a diminutive girl finds endless opportunities for play in a house that towers around her. Comfortable with her surroundings, she watches the sunrise atop a large leaf, runs on a roll of toilet paper, collects "little treasures" in a shallow lid, and takes cooling dips in a water glass "on the warmer days." She has rule over her tiny kingdom... until an ominous shadow appears. "Must I hide now forever?" she wonders, wide-eyed under a bookcase. The tiny adventurer plucks up, however, "with a little courage"--and the fearsome shadow turns out to be a friendly cat. After establishing trust, they become inseparable friends, together moving through daily rituals. Detailed illustrations in colored-pencil textures bring readers down to size, pulling them into the girl's pastel-hued, wonder-filled world as it expands, through her bravery, to embrace a life beyond solitude. Ages 4--8. (Feb.)
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Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 1--A tiny person lives in a regular human-sized world. Exploring houseplants, rolling on a tube of toilet paper, and swimming in a glass of water are among her daily activities. One day she discovers that she is being followed by a dark and scary shadow. At first she hides, but she knows she cannot hide forever. She arms herself with a thimble on her head and brandishes a push pin as a sword to investigate the shadow. She confronts it; it purrs back at her. She and the cat become best friends, adventuring around the house together. Pencil and charcoal drawings, accented with a select few monochrome colors, create a feeling of nostalgia for vintage picture books. One concise sentence per two-page spread immerses readers in the big world theme and maintains a good storytelling pace. Children may sympathize with being small in a world where everything is large, potentially scary, but also full of adventure. The overarching theme of bravely confronting your fears is a good reminder for all ages. VERDICT A fun look at perspective, perfect for storytime sharing.--Mindy Hiatt, Salt Lake County Library Services
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Review by Horn Book Review
This lively picture book stars a Tom Thumbsized protagonist, approximately six inches tall. The tiny child rises with the sun, searches the house for little treasures (a cat toy foreshadows events), cools off in a glass of water, climbs the houseplants, and more. Their routine is interrupted when a scary shadow appears. The child, wearing a thimble helmet and armed with a sewing-pin spear, courageously confronts the mysterious creature. After the shadow is revealed to be an affable pet cat, the new friends continue their escapades outsidewhere a canine shadow suggests another surprise to come. Straightforward first-person, present-tense text creates a sense of conversational intimacy. No human-sized humans are shown in the story, but their messes (books, toothpaste tubes, cellphone chargers, etc.) add layers to the visual narrative. The illustrations offer texture (from the woodgrain floors to the cats fur), and abundant shades of gray contrast attractively with more vibrant hues (notably various greens and yellows). This imaginative exploration of scale and perspective should serve as a popular storytime selection. Elisa Gall March/April 2020 p.64(c) Copyright 2020. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
A miniature child explores an apartment and makes friends with a cat.First-person narration, generally limited to one or two sentences per double-page spread, describes the child's investigation of potted plants, various small objects, and familiar household areas. Contrasts between the straightforward text, which has a slightly formal tone, and the lighthearted action depicted in the illustrations provide humor, which helps mitigate the book's plotless feel. The last few pages repeat the text from the first section with small variations as the child enjoys activities with the (initially feared, now accepted) cat as companion. Small enough to dance on a roll of toilet paper, the wide-eyed, apparently white child wears a yellow shirt, black shorts, and a thimble as a hat. Some of the items will be familiar to young listeners: paper clips, keys, a safety pin; others, like the thimble, might be more obscure. Background details suggest that the apartment's occupants are two adults and a child, obliquely raising the possibility that the small-scale adventures depicted are imaginary. The artwork has the appearance of colored-pencil drawings and features a somewhat muted palette with splashes of red, yellow, and green to enliven the pages. Levi makes the most of texture, size, and perspective to create interest. Observant readers will see the cat before it's mentioned and may enjoy spotting the insect and arachnid that appear throughout.This Swiss import is mildly amusing, but even a final twist fails to generate much excitement. (Picture book. 4-7) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
