The Five Lives of Our Cat Zook (review)

Abstract

Reviewed by: The Five Lives of Our Cat Zook Kate Quealy-Gainer Rocklin, Joanne . The Five Lives of Our Cat Zook; illus. by Robyn Ng. Amulet/Abrams, 2012. 218p. ISBN 978-1-4197-0192-4 $16.95 R Gr. 4-6. Zook has eight extra toes, a chewed-off ear, black gums, and terrible breath, all traits that make the scraggly old cat utterly lovable to ten-year-old Oona and her younger brother, Freddy. Unfortunately, Zook also now has kidney failure, so he is spending most of his time at the vet, while Oona tries to console Freddy with [End Page 527] made-up stories about Zook's past lives (of the nine lives afforded to cats, Zook has only used up five, according to Oona). An avid whopper-teller, much like her late father, Oona finds that although her stories cheer up Freddy, they're cold comfort for Oona herself, particularly as her reality gets more complicated: her mom has started seeing someone new, a few of Oona's previous white lies turn out to be not so harmless, and poor Zook recovers only to take a turn for the worse. Rocklin (One Day and One Amazing Morning on Orange Street, BCCB 4/11) has a knack for making emotionally complex situations accessible to younger readers. Here, Oona's narration rings with authenticity as she tries to negotiate her grief for her father, her worry for her cat, and her mother's new relationship all with a perceptivity that is credible but never precocious. The diversity among the secondary players makes for a nice multicultural element, as does the inclusion of several folktales that serve as inspiration for Oona's various iterations of Zook's past lives. A bittersweet ending, realistic without melodrama, reinforces the idea that life, like the best kind of whopper, can be both happy and sad and often has plenty of "to be continueds." Copyright © 2012 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois