Are you a cat lover? I have been in the past. I owned a beautiful Siamese with champagne colored fur. Tinker was a cute kitten but grew to be a rather feisty “tom”. And, yet, he was beautiful with his special markings and turquoise eyes.

Books about cats can share a similar kind of paradox. They can be beautiful, fun, helpful, disturbing, as well as unsettling. The cat in Paula Fox’s Newbery award winner, The One-Eyed Cat is not cute or pretty. He is a feral with scrappy body and ragged fur. Sadly, the hero of the story -jumped-the-gun- so to speak by sneaking an early Christmas present out behind the house so he could practice the feel of the weapon in his nine year old hands. An accidental discharge from the gun took the cat’s eye and left our hero with a year’s worth of guilt and remorse. But, good was worked out of the bad when the young boy developed a deep and lasting friendship with an elderly neighbor. The boy inherited wisdom, compassion, and helpful strategies for the feeding and care of a wild cat with only one eye. This book is sad, funny, unsettling, and about as real-world as any I’ve ever read. It is perfect for older elementary through high school readers. It’s especially meaningful for animal lovers.

Do you like fables, those moral tales with animals playing the part of humans?

I know of a very good Caldecott award winner with creative images made from a variety of materials to form collages of a very hungry cat. The Cat From Hunger Mountain by Ed Young teaches a good lesson about greed and gluttony. The storyline is easy to follow but the vocabulary could be above most primary age children. This provides a perfect opportunity for read aloud. The adult reader can improvise and explain the unknown words and some of the abstract concepts in the story. This is a great book for middle school readers, especially those with an interest in the visual arts. It is also a good reminder that greed is a universal failing, one that can bring some very hard life-lessons.

Both One-Eyed Cat and The Cat from Hunger Mountain are good springboards for research projects. Depending on the ages of your students, you could delve more deeply into the following topics:

World Hunger

Nutrition and Healthful Living

Gun Safety

Relationships between the very young and the very old.

More Ideas for Younger Children

My pet cat. Use drawings and photos to tell pet stories. <be sure to give credit to your sources>

Wordsearch using names of different breeds of cats

What’s the difference between domesticated and wild cats (or jungle cats)?

The Light Wins

Who doesn’t love a good animal fantasy? Think of the adventures of Peter Rabbit stealing

cabbages in the garden with Mr. McGregor always in hot pursuit. Or, remember Alice in her adventures in underworld wonderland chasing the rabbit who was always chasing time. A more modern story is The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo. The noble little mouse had his tale cut off by a misguided young servant girl as he continually was being chased by ravaging rats in the cellar dungeon. As the hero in the story, he was not to be deterred as he continued on his quest to rescue the beautiful human princess (possible only in a fantasy/fable). One of the main themes in The Tale of Despereaux is the persistence of the protagonist (good guy and hero) Despereaux. He kept seeking the light while chasing through the dark tunnels of the dungeon. Even though he must return to the Dark of the dungeon to complete his mission, he never gave up on the Light. In contrast, the wicked rats hated the light with such vengeance they even worked to prevent others from seeking the light.

So many places in scripture refer to Jesus as Light. He came into the world as light for all people, but just like the rats in the Tale of Despereaux some loved darkness more than light. As the Apostle John explains in John 3:19-20, those who do evil hate the light because they know the light exposes the wrong that they do. Evil prefers darkness over light. Light brings a new day. The sun rises and we can see the beauty of the world around us. It can be used to guide us as we walk along a path even at night time. Light causes plants to grow and is needed for life to continue on earth. A spotlight can be a life-saving warning shining on the rocky shore of a beach. Even a laser light is used by the surgeon to cut through disease in human flesh.

The light of Jesus shines through his parables, his miracles, his example of prayer. He shines through his commandments to love God and love our neighbor in the same way we love our self. Later Jesus’ followers also became lights by telling of God’s redemption through Jesus, but remember, we are only a reflection of The Light. To remain bright and shining, we must commit to time with The True Light by studying the Holy Bible, prayer, and seeking His will continually. Jesus’ light never fades and is a guide for us throughout our life.

John 8:12 Jesus said… I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.

If you are a parent, grandparent, or other caregiver, click on the Being the Light link below and download a wordsearch puzzle  (www.thewordfinder.com) with a variety of words expressing light!

Being the Light! (download printable puzzle )

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This blog has been written by Carol Adamec Brown, retired professor and constant volunteer with her local church.

DiCamillo, K., & Ering, T. B. (2003). The tale of Despereaux: Being the story of a mouse, a princess, some soup, and a spool of thread.

Images from Pixabay.com         

< https://pixabay.com/photos/rabbit-forest-nature-rabbits-3497805/ >

< https://pixabay.com/photos/lighthouse-starry-sky-universe-6785763/>

Puzzle created using The Word Finder < https://www.thewordfinder.com/ >

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