PICTURE BOOK - Here Comes Santa Cat by Deborah Underwood

Illustrated by Claudia Rueda

2014 Dial Books for Young Readers

HC $16.99

88 pgs. - but minimal words and lots of priceless pictures to peruse - similar in text length )or shorter) than a 32-page picture book

Goodreads rating: 4.34

My rating: 4

Endpapers: red

My comments: Very, very cute!  Cat, being a cat, can't talk ... so he draws picture messages back and forth to the invisible, omnipotent speaker/owner/friend.  He'd like a Christmas gift from Santa - but has been naughty most of the year.  "Speaker" suggests that he do something nice, even if it's last minute - it's better than never.  The outcome is gently funny and fun.  I'd love to read this to my grandkids.

Goodreads:  Cat took on a bunny in Here Comes the Easter Cat, but now Christmas is coming, and Cat has a hunch he's not on Santa's "nice" list. Which means? No presents for Cat. So he tries to be good, but children, it seems, aren't wild for his brand of gift-giving. Still, Cat might surprise himself, and best of all, he may just get to meet the man in the red suit himself—and receive a holiday surprise of his own. Fans of Pete the Cat, Splat the Cat, and Bad Kitty will delight in this holiday treat.