Dewey: There's a Cat in the Library!

By: Vicki Myron and Bret Witter 
Illustrated by: Steve James
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers 
Publication Date: September 2009 
ISBN: 978-0316068741 
Reviewed by: Will Gabbett 
Review Date: December 23, 2009

Quick! Look! There’s a cat in the library and he wants to play with you! Whether your child loves going to the library, or you have a reluctant reader, Dewey: There's a Cat in the Library! is a great way to encourage trips to the local library.

Dewey is the sweet story of a kitten who was “deposited” into the library’s book return box on a frigid winter night. Found half frozen the next morning by Vicki Myron, one of the library’s employee, Dewey the kitten was cared for, and soon adopted by the library. This book takes a lighthearted look at a library cat and the joy that he brought to so many of the library’s patrons.

The first book written about Dewey, Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World, was an adult memoir. But it suffered from too little information about Dewey to fill an almost 300 page book. In an attempt to pad the book, the author included far too much extraneous information on her life as well as the history of the town. Dewey’s antics were lost amongst all the irrelevant information. Fortunately, that’s not the case with the children’s’ version of the story. There is just enough here – and it’s all about the cat – to make a perfect tale.

The narrative jumps around, showing the various activities that Dewey is involved with, as well as his silly antics. The soft, lifelike drawings showing the sweet cat and young children interacting are inviting as is the idea of a cat at the local library.

Quill says: A charming “tail” about a cat living at the library.