SIX IS SO MUCH LESS THAN SEVEN

A touching tribute to pets and how they enrich our lives is gently illustrated in Himler’s (A Thanksgiving Turkey, 2001, etc.) trademark soft watercolors. An elderly man busily but quietly goes about his activities accompanied by a bevy of six cats, but a sense of sadness imbues the scenes; it turns out the second-to-last activity of the day is visiting the gravesite of a seventh cat. Leavening the sadness and contributing a note of hope is the very last activity: looking in on a mother cat and four newborn kittens. Himler has a real feel for cats and their movements and interests; the endpapers are decorated with line sketches of cats, simple, but perfect in their shapes. As the old man wakes up, has breakfast, cleans house, fixes the tractor, mows the fields, paints the shed, takes a rest, gets the mail, mends the fence, cleans the barn, picks tomatoes, and takes a walk to the grave, his six faithful cats accompany him but also busy themselves with catty things like running from the vacuum cleaner, batting at butterflies and each other, looking at birds, and prowling around the barn. Those of any age recovering from the loss of a pet will welcome this soothing story that allows for a time to grieve, without urging the bereaved to cheer up or move on too quickly. (Picture book. 4+)