Small Readers: Flubby is NOT a good pet and Flubby will NOT play with that by J. E. Morris

I loved Morris' Maude the Koala books and I was thrilled to see she's published a true easy reader with her humorous cartoons. These are sure to fly off your shelves and I can't wait to introduce them to my book club kids!

In Flubby is NOT a good pet, Kami, a girl with brown skin and wild brown hair, introduces us to her pet cat Flubby. Her friends have pets too - they can sing, do tricks, jump, and more. But Flubby does not do that. Flubby does not do ANYTHING. Flubby is a very disappointing pet. But maybe there is one thing that Flubby can do? It turns out, he's just the right pet to have in a scary storm!

In Flubby's second adventure, Flubby will NOT play with that Kami is once again trying to elicit a response from the enigmatic Flubby. Kami has a whole bag of toys to try out on Flubby. Will he play with the mouse? With a swinging toy? Or the really exciting one? Nope. Nope. Nope. It looks like there's absolutely nothing Flubby will play with... except, just maybe, a brown paper bag!

The short, simple sentences, "This toy rolls." or Jill's pet can jump." put this squarely in that rare category of pre-readers. It falls at 150 on the lexile scale, or an E on the Fountas and Pinnell scale. The short sentences lend themselves well to Morris' deadpan humor, which is played out in the accompanying pictures. Flubby, a pudgy white cat with gray markings (inspired by Morris' own cat Flubby shown on the frontispiece with an equally unimpressed expression) is just not very interested. Tricks? He'd rather nap. Toys? They leave him cold. But when it counts, and just when Kami has given up on him, Flubby stirs himself and does the unexpected! Cat owners and cat lovers alike will giggle as they recognize the extreme cat-like behavior of Fluffy, sauntering home in the rain, only to suddenly panic when the thunder and lightning starts, or the sudden shattering of his cool when Kami pulls out the really "exciting" toy!

Verdict: A funny addition to the easy reader genre, this is sure to delight cat-lovers and kids who like the humor of Mo Willems and other comic writers for the beginning reader set. Recommended and I look forward to more Flubby in the future!

Flubby is NOT a good pet
ISBN: 9781524787769

Flubby will NOT play with that

ISBN: 9781524787783

Published April 2019 by Penguin Workshop; Review copies provided by the publisher; Donated to the library