Saturday, October 08, 2022

LEONARD (MY LIFE AS A CAT) by Carlie Sorosiak

 

Leonard (My Life as a Cat) by Carlie Sorosiak

Description

School Library Journal (March 1, 2021)

Gr 4-7-On a helium planet far, far away, an unembodied species has the opportunity, on their 300th birthday, to travel to Earth and experience life as a human-at least, that's the plan. Our hero has decided he wants to be a park ranger in Yellowstone, but getting distracted while traveling via energy beam causes him to end up as a cat, rescued from a tropical storm in South Carolina by Olive, who names him Leonard. Problem is, at the end of his 30-day window, he'll need to be blown out of the Old Faithful geyser at Yellowstone, or he'll be stuck on Earth forever, and no longer immortal. As the days pass, Leonard comes to learn the joys of having a body (even if he does hack up a fur ball) and, even more, of love. His obligation to meet up with his own kind at Yellowstone, and the challenges of making the nearly 2,000-mile trip, grows more daunting every day. It's only when Leonard enlists the help of Olive and her family that things finally begin to make sense. While this charming story exists in the realm of science fiction, it is more an animal story than anything else, and perfect to hand to young cat lovers. Leonard's surprise at, and observations of, life in a cat's body is spot-on and frequently very funny. His authentic, deepening relationship with Olive-who has been told that she's "weird" because she loves to talk about animals-allows her to stand up and make her voice heard at an important juncture in her life. VERDICT Purchase where eccentric, humorous animal stories are popular.-Elizabeth Friend, Wester M.S., TX © Copyright 2021. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.


My Comments

Wonderful! Leonard's observations about humans and life on earth create a very funny yet tender page turner. I absolutely could not put it down. This would be a great book for discussion groups. Quirky, adorable, but gives a lot to ponder. Love, love this one. A favorite!


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