From the cover to the final page, there can be no doubt that what we have here is one very bad cat. Evidence abounds, from the torn up furniture to the paw prints up the wall to the moustache and beard drawn on the author's photo. But the jet-black feline at the heart of this entertaining picture book wasn't always a bad cat. She was a sweet kitty until the fateful day when her family ran out of cat food and offered her people food instead. Does this kitty appreciate the food? Well, in a word, no.

Author/illustrator Nick Bruel presents a riotous alphabetical roster of healthy foods presented to the cat, from asparagus to zucchini. Kitty reacts with disdain, like a teenager receiving fashion advice from a parent: grabbing her neck, rolling her eyes, screaming in horror. And when the facial gestures fail to get her message across, the kitty resorts to more forceful actions calculated to get RESPECT!

Once again, readers are launched on a trip through the alphabet. First, we learn, the bad kitty "Ate my homework" and then "Bit Grandma." Other highlights of kitty's revenge (in alphabetical order, of course) are "Hurled hair balls at our heads" and "Overturned her cat box" and finally, "Zeroed the zinnias." Her displeasure with the culinary choices chez kitty builds to its hilarious climax and is brought to a screeching halt when the adults arrive with a bevy of tasty treats for kitty, everything from anchovies to zebra ziti. To pay back her generous owner, bad kitty decides she wants to be a good kitty. "But not just any good kitty—a very, very good, good, good kitty." The contrite cat performs fine feline tasks and even takes on duties usually reserved for human beings, like repairing curtains and filling out tax forms.

Bruel has created a joyfully silly portrait of a picky eater with attitude. His bold, humorous illustrations are sure to keep young readers amused as they follow kitty's escapades again and again. Copyright 2005 BookPage Reviews.

With the alphabet as his jumping off point, Bruel (Boing! ) recounts just how far things can go awry when cats go bad. After Kitty discovers that the only food in the house consists of 26 kinds of vegetables (asparagus, beets, cauliflower and on through zucchini), her mood turns blacker than her scraggly fur coat. She unleashes her own alphabet of woe that will have youngsters howling with laughter (and cat owners young and old will understand that many of these scenarios do not require a total suspension of disbelief). Bruel chronicles the misbehavior by dividing the spreads into eight strips, each containing a kind of visual one-liner devoted to a single letter. "She... Q uarreled with our neighbors," the author writes, as Kitty watches through the mail slot while a human holds a note that reads, "Meow Hiss Hiss...!" The furry protagonist even "Sold my toys" (Kitty seems to have appropriated her unseen owner's lemonade stand for this purpose). But when the humans restock the larder with cat-friendly food (rhino ravioli, shark sushi, etc.), the feline turns over a new leaf--in alphabetical fashion, of course. Even readers who've mastered their ABCs will laugh at Bruel's gleefully composed litanies and the can-you-top-this spirit that animates every page. Ages 4-8. (Oct.)

K-Gr 3 -This four-part alphabet book will appeal to youngsters who like their stories more naughty than nice. The tale opens with Kitty learning that her owners have run out of cat food and that her only options are healthy and nutritious edibles that run the gamut from "Asparagus" to "Zucchini." She reacts by doing an A-to-Z list of mischievous things, like "claw[ing] the curtains" and "hurl[ing] hair balls at our heads." When her owners return with food that ranges from "An Assortment of Anchovies" to "Baked Zebra Ziti," Kitty realizes she must atone for her bad behavior with a final list of alphabetical deeds such as cleaning the cat box and washing the car. Some actions and items are a bit of a stretch, in particular "sQuashes" for "Q" and "rhUbarb" for "U." While the story is packed with colorful cartoon illustrations that introduce each object, it is Kitty who steals the show with her slyly drawn feline expressions. Intended for slightly older alphabet-book fans, this offering will attract readers with a taste for the ridiculous.-Maura Bresnahan, High Plain Elementary School, Andover, MA