Anatole and the Cat

by Eve Titus and illustrated by Paul Galdone

“Anatole and the Cat” by Eve Titus and illustrated by Paul Galdone. Published by Dragonfly Books. A charming sequel to the classic story of Anatole, the mouse, who has now become the Vice President of cheese tasting in Duval’s Cheese Factory.

In the whole of France, no mouse who was more respected than Anatole could be found. He had established himself in the role of a cheese taster at the cheese factory. Nobody working in the factory had ever seen him. They had no idea that he was a mouse. If they had known, things might have been quite the opposite! He did his work late in the night after everyone had left.

As he and his helper Gaston were working one night, they heard soft footsteps on the floor above. They began to shiver out of fear. It was their worst foe! A Cat!! They continued their work hoping that the awful animal wouldn’t come to their floor. But their fear was so much that they ended up making lots of mistakes. They ran away from the factory in a hurry when they realised that the cat was coming down the stairs. Anatole started getting horrible dreams about cats.

Would his honourable career come to an end because of the wretched beast? Would M’sieu Duval and his staff trust Anatole’s reviews after the mistakes that he had made while putting up signs on the cheeses? Would the cat keep away from the factory? What was Anatole going to do about the cat? Would Anatole be caught? Would things get better for Anatole at all? Read the thrilling story to find out.

My almost eight year old thoroughly enjoyed reading this book as much as the first one of the series. It was quite gripping and he was curious to know what would happen next. The illustrations are charming and bring the story to life. Especially the spread with details of signs that Anatole had left on the cheeses while in a hurry. We just couldn’t stop laughing after reading them :) There are 10 books in the series. Unfortunately, most of them except the first two seem to be out of print or unavailable :( This book as well as the first one are Caldecott Honor books.

Recommended Age

The book is apt for children aged 5/6+.

Reasons to Read

The fact that it is a nearly 60 year old classic which still continues to tickle the funny bone. For all parents who’ve loved the movie Ratatouille, this is sure to recall that movie for you and maybe you could go watch that with your children :)