  | Full Text Reviews: School Library Journal - 11/01/2014 K-Gr 2—Eula, a square-shaped cat who does her best to fit into her round world, showcases the letters of the alphabet while gardening. Rather than presenting each letter in a list of corresponding animals or objects, the amazing feline moves from A to Z with the assistance of a hungry and gregarious blue mouse as they discuss the flavorful merits of the spinach growing in Eula's garden. Unlike Eula, Mouse loves "green, leafy spinach." So does her porcupine friend. At the insistence of Mouse, the cat reluctantly tries a leaf and exclaims, "Whoa! Extremely yucky! Undeterred, her tiny friend concludes their conversation by asking, "Zucchini perhaps?" Schoonmaker illustrates the square cat with spare but colorful watercolors that feature each highlighted letter in oversize, decorative print surrounded by plenty of white space. Eula wears a floppy, green and yellow hat and a disgruntled expression, while the mouse scampers insouciantly across each page. Young readers will giggle over this unconventional alphabet book and perhaps be inspired to eat their vegetables. Pair this amusing picture book with Kelly Bingham's Z Is for Moose (Greenwillow 2012).—Linda L. Walkins, Saint Joseph Preparatory High School, Boston, MA - Copyright 2014 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission. Booklist - 12/01/2014 This alphabet book, which begins each sentence of text with a succeeding letter of the alphabet, features Eula, a square cat, who is nevertheless extremely hip. Mouse finds her starting a new project, growing vegetables. “Hooray!” Mouse wants spinach, but “Ick!” says Eula. “I DON’T like spinach.” As the mouse scrambles through J to O, a double-page spread introduces Porcupine. Turns out the prickly fellow is a friend of Square Cat, but, unbelievably, he likes spinach, too. Cat finally gives it a try but finds the leafy green extremely “Yucky,” so Mouse introduces zucchini. Paired with simple text and on abundant white space, watercolor, gouache, pencils, and ink illustrate the personalities of the active little blue-gray mouse and his orange feline friend, decked out in a green sunhat. Bright-red letters highlight the alphabet and make the story pop. Swirling vegetables and garden tools contrast with the stolid cat and the geometric design of her square (not curling) tail, an added bit of humor. Pair with Z Is for Moose (2012), another story where the animals take over the narration. - Copyright 2014 Booklist. Loading...
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