Title: A Chaos of Kittens Meets a Knot of Toads: in the Land of Critter Crowds
Author: Ruth Anderson Lawler
Illustrated by: Salvador Capuyan
Publisher: XlibrisUS
ISBN: 978-1-5434-5712-4
Pages: 24
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Reviewed by: Beth Adams
Pacific Book Review
One of the most “fun” parts of the English language is how a group of animals are named; such as a pride of lions, a pod of whales, or a gaggle of geese. In A Chaos of Kittens Meets a Knot of Toads: in the Land of Critter Crowds, author Ruth Anderson Lawler takes this “grouping” vernacular to the fullest while telling a story about a minor conflict caused by kittens bothering toads and jellyfish. The parliament of owls needed to convene but it was difficult to hear over the frolic and noise of the gathering animals, and of course the bubbly burping of the smack of jellyfish. Each and every page is adorned with highly detailed illustrations of the animals to a point where it would be fair to say there are more pictures than words in this remarkable book.
This story is surely one to please while it tickles the fancy of young children. Toddlers will become accustomed to a sub-set of English, as they get educated to the whimsical grouping names of many animals. The burping makes for an instant giggle while the pictures intrigue their imaginations to a place where animals gather, such as a watering hole in the Savannah of Africa. The illustrations brought to my imagination what it must have been like in the waiting area for Noah’s Ark, as the animals assembled in their species groupings in peace. In this case, the demise of what to do about the chaos of kittens was the topic at hand, and we all know kittens will play while being hard to control.
The book is the perfect length for a bedtime story. After the initial reading, when the questions as to the meanings of the words will no doubt need to be explained, kids will pick up on the underlying theory of how the names were derived. Thus they will gain the unique understanding of the personalities of the animals in a way in which the English elite intended their humor in making up these terms to prevail throughout generations. Due to the original interleaving of such interesting names along with the detailed illustrations, A Chaos of Kittens Meets a Knot of Toads is sure to be a winner within this genre of illustrated children’s books. I think one of the most valuable lessons for children hearing or reading this book is: when we work together effectively as a team we can solve our problems and improve any situation.
