Millions of Cats

Bibliography

Gág, Wanda. 1996. Millions of Cats. New York: PaperStar Book. ISBN: 0698113632

Plot Summary

An old man goes out seeking one cat for himself and his wife because they are lonely.  However, he ends up finding “hundreds of cats, thousands of cats, millions and billions and trillions of cats.” He then had a complication trying to find the prettiest cat to take home. They all followed him home. He continued to have an issue in finding only one. In the end only one homely kitten remained.  This became their cat so they were no longer lonely.

Critical Analysis

Millions of Cats by Wanda Gág is the oldest American picture book still in print. It was originally published in 1928.

While the cover is printed in red and yellow, the inside is only black and white with detailed drawings in pen. Unlike some picture books where the words are not necessary to understanding the story, Millions of Cats requires the words since most of the pictures show a person carrying cats around the countryside.  The exception to this is the first couple of pages that set the scene around a small house in the countryside.

The typeface is difficult to read and would be better if a little larger. Some pages contain a lot of text filling the entire page.  The size and style of font could dissuade some young readers. However, older readers should not have a problem with decoding. Considering this book was published in 1928, this is an excellent first step toward a quality picture book and a good story.

The story has good movement between the man setting out on the adventure and the couple settling on a cat. The author does a good job of pacing each major scene in the book. Additionally, the change of setting helps to move the story along. There is a bit of whimsy and imagery in finding so many cats. This imagery and text is repeated every couple of pages as the cats move from one location to another. When read out loud, this story has a very good cadence.

There is not much character development of the elderly couple. However, that is not required for the story. There is the right amount of complication and resolution. This story also has the added life lesson that sometimes what you seek is not necessarily in the form of what is needed but can be improved with time and that is also ok; the prettiest cat is not necessarily the best cat.

I would enjoy using this as a sit down book with a small group of students.  The story would be best read aloud.  However, as mentioned previously, the font is not very large, so all the children may not be able to read along with the text.  Also, it might be best to use an overhead projector so all the children can see the detailed illustrations.

Honors and Review Excerpt

This books is a:

  -  Winner of a Newbery Honor

  -  School Library Journal's "One Hundred Books that Shaped the Century": "This Newbery Honor 

     winner is distinguished by innovative design and a strong storyteller's cadence."

  -  Oldest American picture book still in print

Connections

  -  Collect other books that illustrate internal beauty, like the Ugly Duckling by Hans Christian 

     Andersen.

  -  This can be used to lead a discussion about times that children have started looking for one thing but 

     discovered a better thing instead.