Freedom!

March 12, 2012
Miss Annie is a kitten, and she does all of the expected kitten activities—playing with pens and yarn, napping on armchairs, and begging for food. But she does the unexpected, too, like befriending a mouse she knows she’s supposed to hunt. On her first adventure outside of the house, she meets two older cats, Zeno and Miss Rostropovna, who guide her through the big, new world. Annie has a wide range of expressions, from her perked ears to the tip of her pert tail, a perfectly captured paragon of kittenhood. With a charming sensibility and lovely art in the vein of adult bandes desinées like The Rabbi’s Cat, this gentle story of discovery is kept lively with Annie’s antics, interior dialogue, and interactions with the creatures, human and otherwise, in her neighborhood. Ages 7–10.

January 15, 2012
Miss Annie might just be a kitten, but she's ready for adventure. Four-month-old Miss Annie lives with The Dad, The Mom and young mistress Sarah--all of whom readers only see from the thighs down. Miss Annie defends her territory against potted plants and ventures on to The Dad's desk despite stern warnings because pens and erasers are amusing. After all, there is little that a roll on the back and a purr can't fix where humans are concerned. Miss Annie's fondest wish is to go outside despite her mouse friend Keshia's warnings of danger. When a window's accidentally left open, Miss Annie leaps at the opportunity and meets old Zeno and beautiful Persian Rostropovna, who teach her about dogs and cars and invite her out to run the rooftops at night. Prolific French cartoonist Le Gall teams with debut graphic-novel illustrator Balthazar and colorist Doo for this first of two simultaneously published urban kitty adventures. In Rooftop Cat, Miss Annie gets a cat door, participates in a neighborhood cat fight with unfortunate results for Zeno and finds a male "friend" for Keshia. A charming balance of cartoon and natural kitty-ness in full-color, eight-panel pages, this cat's-eye view of life will induce purrs in feline fans everywhere. (Graphic fiction. 8-12)

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May 1, 2012

Gr 3-6-Miss Annie is a four-month-old kitten who thinks she is old enough to venture outside into the great wide world. In Freedom, she tries to tell her masters this by doing a fabulous job of guarding the house while they are away. Unfortunately, the humans and the feline don't see eye to eye on what is and what isn't a threat to their home. Good thing they don't know she's befriended a little mouse that has moved in. When she discovers an open window, she decides it is time to experience the sweet taste of freedom and soon finds out that there are rules outside the house, too. Eager to show her the ropes are two older and much wiser neighbor cats, and Miss Annie follows along. In Rooftop, Miss Annie's masters have finally installed a cat door, and she begins venturing forth immediately despite her mouse friend's worries. She finally gets the night of excitement she has been dreaming of when she and the neighbor cats must defend their territory from a band of roaming alley cats. Things look dire until a new cat appears to help them defeat the invaders and cope with the tragic aftermath of the battle. Cat lovers will enjoy seeing things from this feline's perspective. She might be small, but she is full of personality and it shines through in the stories as well as in the colorful illustrations, laid out in eight frames per page.-Carol Hirsche, Provo City Library, UT

Copyright 2012 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 15, 2012
Grades 2-4 Miss Annie, a kitten, is bored at home, shredding papers, jumping on forbidden chairs, and tangling balls of yarn. So when she finds an open window, she leaps onto a nearby tree branch, ready for her first big adventure. Readers will enjoy Annie's wry look at homelife and connect with her yearning to be grown-up enough to try new and forbidden things. Le Gall's text, translated from French, is sometimes a bit advanced for younger readers, but it has an I can do it myself edge that many kids who are ready to push past boundaries will recognize and appreciate. This tone is neatly juxtaposed by Balthazar's charming artwork, which primarily uses Annie's eyes and ears to express her many emotions. While there isn't a lot of action in this volume, it does a good job of introducing the characters and setting the direction for subsequent books in the Miss Annie series.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)