Title: Jazzy and Rhumbi to the Rescue
Author: Dori Seider
Publisher: XlibrisUS
ISBN: 978-1-6641-2179-9
Genre: Illustrated Children’s Book
Pages: 54
Reviewed by: Barbara Miller
Pacific Book Review
In Dori Seider’s illustrated children’s book titled, Jazzy and Rhumbi to the Rescue, a new generation of readers are entertained and educated by the narrative written in the first person by a cat. Jazzy Girl Muffin, along with her sidekick Rhumbi Boy are two rescue cats who use their cleverness to control the actions of their human owners.
It is said that animals, cats in particular, are more aware of their environment – such as an approaching storm – then their human companions. In this story, at first these two cute felines alert their owners, Noisy Guy and the Quiet One, about a duck caught in the drain grate of a stream under a bridge. Having the humans rescue the duck causes the two furry littermates to “appawd” (that’s a cat applause) and give each other their PAW 5’s. Job well done.
Next the humans return a lost duckling to her mother duck, then they make sure Chippy the Chipmunk is OK, and even allow their pet mouse Montgomery to avoid being caught by the exterminator. The humans rescue four bunny rabbits and keep them healthy in an incubator until able to go out to the grass and frolic on their own. And in a suspenseful moment, the Noisy Guy and the Quiet One told a public health inspector they do not have a RODENT issue, because to them Montgomery wasn’t a rodent, but a mouse friend.
Jazzy Girl Muffin explains, “Humans sometimes forget to revel in happiness and comfort.” She continued, “Busy, busy, busy, running around without pause or should I say without paws – because maybe if they were cats, they would know the value of really taking some more time each day for stress-free living.”
The feline mentality of enjoying leisure time, relaxing, and being creatures of such noble heritage is shown clearly in the theme of Jazzy and Rhumbi to the Rescue. After all, having an articulate, perfectly written cat narrative prevents the saying, “The cat’s got your tongue.”
