Bad Kitty Gets a Bath

Bad Kitty Gets a Bath by Nick Bruel

This is not my first perusal of Bad Kitty. I haven’t read all of them in the series – yet, but I have read a couple, and those, I have read several times. We own this title and Happy Birthday Bad Kitty. Thank you Scholastic Book Fair. My older, reluctant reader read them readily. My younger lover of literature rediscovered them on our shelves.

These were not books that I had the pleasure of reading out loud. These were books that the girls were able to enjoy on their own and feel a sense of accomplishment. This one is a chapter book albeit an oversized picture book in disguise. In fact, the original books, Bad Kitty and Poor Puppy and now  Bad Kitty Christmas, are in picture book format. Very crafty of the author to hook them while they are young with clever alphabet books.

My youngest was in bed reading this volume for the Summer Reading Program. I was sitting bedside with my own novel when I received an unusual question. She wanted to know “how” to read a certain part. At first, I didn’t understand. She handed the book over and I glanced through the pages she was indicating. Ah HA!

Chapter Four: Getting Kitty into the Water
Page 75: The Subtle Art of Negotiation
Flattery, Begging, Bribery and Reverse Psychology

She was asking how to read the sections with feeling. And it was my pleasure. As soon as she heard the pleading in my voice for “begging”, she grabbed the book back and tried it out. Oh she is a good one for voices. Not that anyone else will ever hear it until she is perhaps… forty.

I started wondering how the typical first or second grader would read this book. What if they didn’t have someone to model after? What if they didn’t understand the meaning of those words? Especially “Reverse Psychology”. It would be the difference between reading a funny book and reading a hilarious one! And this book is hysterical!

So if you haven’t read this book before. If you have never heard of it, drive to your nearest library and grab a copy. Why, grab them all. You could read each of the chapter books in two to three nights. And your kids will love you for it. You might even catch them rereading it again like mine is right now.

This book was a 2011 Monarch Nominee – suggested reading for Kindergarten through third grade. Consider it a pet owner’s handbook. Of course, the reason it is so funny is that “CATS HATE BATHS!!” Perhaps we find it particularly silly because we have a cat. I don’t know, but I think everyone is under the impression that cats hate water.

Hold on for this wild ride as Kitty runs, hides, scratches and vocalizes. It is a knock-down, drag-out fight for who is in charge. In the process, you might just learn a thing or two about cats, chickens, editors, vegetables and plasma. I will go so far as to say that you won’t be able to put this book down. The next thing you know, you’ll have 125 pages behind you and will wish you took my advice and checked out the entire series. You Are Welcome!