Ever read a book with a story more interesting than it’s story?
Huh.
In 1986 a pair of author/illustrators wrote a children’s book together with just four words repeated throughout.
So what you say?
One was American, the other Russian. And 1986 was smack dab in the midst of the Cold War. This sorta thing just wasn’t done.
The resulting work was Here Comes The Cat, a compelling tome that has been published anew by the fresh kiddie imprint of McSweeney’s, McSweeney’s McMullens.
The illustrations of many mice, several fish, a pair of ladybugs and one over-sized feline are gorgeous. The use of shadows and of a variety of presumed, not always seen light that is cast across every page is a wonderful launching point for conversation with children about fear, literary fiction devices (for the very ambitious), U.S./U.S.S.R. relations decades ago, or maybe about some post-war fear-mongering so prevalent today (hey there, Tea Party Patriots!).
Okay, Here Comes The Cat may also stand on more conventional legs; a simple book featuring a gaggle of adorable mice in dresses that a 4-year old girl with the nickname of “Mouse” will enjoy selecting as “their favorites”. But if you want discussion, as I did, its available. Oh, the mouse I like the best is the confused male scratching his head towards the end. Because I know you’re curious.
About those four words. Yep, the title is the only four word phrase inside the book. Said aloud with accelerating emphasis and urgency, and paired with those lovely pictures, Here Comes The Cat proves a surprisingly griping and tense tale. The climax of which has a Trojan Horse vibe but none of the mice seem the least bit suspicious. A very trusting species of rodent, I reckon.
This new deluxe version of Here Comes The Cat from McSweeney’s McMullens is timed for the book’s 25th anniversary and comes complete with a massive, thick fold-out poster which depicts an opening scene not in the book itself – a sort of one-page prequel if you will. Pretty sweet stuff.
Here Comes The Cat is an enduring treasure not in spite of it’s use of only 4 words, but because of it.
