A NIGHT ON THE TILES

When Martha’s Away (1995), her cat leads a busy life, but it’s nothing compared to his night schedule; as this companion book demonstrates, once his human falls asleep, it’s up and out to study fashion, engineering, and mechanics at the Cat Academy, have a whisker trim, then rendezvous with feline friend Audrey for a banana milkshake and a movie. Ingman strews naively painted figures, plus an occasional bit of printed music or a black-and-white still from, say, Roman Holiday, against strongly colored, vigorously brushed monochrome backgrounds, creating a whimsically contemporary look perfectly in keeping with the brief, droll text. Even more industrious than the nightclub-owning pet of Nina Laden’s The Night I Followed the Dog (1994), this ambitious kitty thoroughly debunks the silly notion that cats laze about all the time. (Picture book. 4-7)