SCAREDY CATS

Three cats let their imaginations run wild as they wonder what might await them inside a mystery gift box.

Two cats ponder the contents of a white box with pink polka dots and a bow. The white cat is convinced that it must be a cake, but the orange cat thinks it might be something more sinister. A third cat joins them. Could there be a crocodile inside? Maybe a great white shark? Or, wildest of all, a 30-ton monster guinea pig? Mack ends the book with the mystery unsolved, an open question with which readers can wrestle. The pages are laid out with the cats on the left-hand side; their imagined scenarios, set inside colorful thought bubbles, play out on the right. The illustrations are simple, clear, and appealing. The cats are drawn with realistic details: plush fur, soft paws, long whiskers. The imagined side of the page has a cartoonish touch, the surprises appearing out of the box, larger than life, which makes those scenes playful rather than frightening. The moral of the story is clear: Sometimes what we imagine is scarier than reality. Some might be disappointed that the contents of the box are never revealed, but then what’s really inside isn’t actually the point. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

Cute kitties and silly, imaginative fun make for a tale that’s perfect for preschoolers.