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Our Bookshop Store is Up!

We finally have our Bookshop store up! It’s a work in progress, and I’m constantly adding new books I find or remember, but it’s finally up and running. If you like print books, please consider buying through our page there. All proceeds go back to the organization since we are a nonprofit. For readers who prefer audiobooks and ebooks, we will be setting up our partnerships with audiobook and ebook companies soon as well.

Also, since we are now a nonprofit, this website will soon be shifting over to MyCatJeoffryBooks.org. This site will soon re-direct there.

We are hoping to open in brick and mortar form in Spring 2021. We will definitely keep you posted!

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LOUISIANA’S WAY HOME by Kate DiCamillo

Lovely book we discovered the other day at the Chandler Public Library. LOUISIANA’S WAY HOME by one of our favorite middle-grade authors, Kate DiCamillo, tells the story of Louisiana Elefante, a young girl whose parents have died and who is living with her grandmother.

One day, her granny insists they must leave their home permanently as the day of reckoning has arrived. Granny has done this before but this time Louisiana knows it’s serious. They drive off, leaving behind everything Louisiana has ever known, including close friends, and a beloved dog and cat.

When Granny’s emergency need for medical care causes them to stop momentarily, Louisiana meets some new friends, namely a boy named Burke and his crow, who end up helping her discover who she really is and find home.

Granny, who seems mentally ill, though that term is never used, is irresponsible to the point of being borderline abusive, but somehow you can’t hate her. Louisiana’s voice is so original, so compelling and engaging, you can’t stop turning the pages until you’re sure she ends up well. Readers originally met Louisiana in another DiCamillo book I haven’t yet read, RAYMIE NIGHTINGALE, which of course I now must read.

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Review, THE GIRL WHO DRANK THE MOON

Normally, I focus on books about or starring animals as main characters, but this middle-grade novel was too brilliant to pass up! And, it has a couple of fantastical animals – a sweet little dragon named Fyrion, and an equally endearing huge swamp creature named Glerk. Both characters stole my heart, along with the humans, which are also a bit fantastical, since many possess some degree of magic.

The Girl Who Drank the Moon, by Kelly Barnhill, very deservedly won the 2017 Newbery Medal for children’s writing. At the beginning the book reminded me of Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery.” The townspeople – living in a place called The Protectorate – blindly believe that a witch demands they leave the first-born baby of the season for her consumption. Of course, whichever unlucky family must deliver their baby to her, by leaving it out in the forest, suffers unbelievable sorrow, some mothers never fully recovering. This is what happens to a woman who must leave her baby girl, later named Luna, the protagonist.

But who originated this story of the witch? Is she real? And what really happens to the babies left out in the forest? And what if someone begins to question conventional wisdom?

This book is amazing in the breadth of its themes: the power of myth, the ownership of a story, belief that is allowed to go unchallenged, truth, falseness, lies. Then, as the story goes on, the themes turn to love, forgiveness, and hope triumphing over despair. It’s a story for our times and it’s a beautiful one people’d by deeply endearing, enchanting characters and a twisting, turning plot that keeps you on the edge of your seat – whether you’re a kid or an adult!

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Review of GOOD DOG by Dan Gemeinhart

This is a time when I wish I had a good book club for animal lovers because I’d so love to discuss this one with others! GOOD DOG is a middle-grade novel by well-regarded author Dan Gemeinhart. The book begins with Brodie having died and gone to a place between earth and heaven. He senses that the boy he has just left down on earth, Aiden, is in trouble and he wants to go back down and help him before going off to the Forever. But in doing so, he risks losing his soul and living in darkness forever. It’s a risk he has to take to save his boy.

Along the way he meets Tuck, a lovable pit bull, and Patsy, a tough-talking but deep down goodhearted tabby, who are both in the same situation but decide to help Brodie instead of focusing on their own humans. To find Aiden, they have to battle the hellhounds, dark dogs who’ve lost their souls and now need to feed on the light of others. I was on the edge of my seat the whole way through their search for Aiden.

The stories of how each animal died are all so sad and overall this was a real tearjerker. But the expressions of love between each animal and their human and especially between Brodie and Aiden are so beautiful, so moving. I think this is a book kids – and adults who love a good story! – will cherish.

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Review of CHESTER AND GUS by Cammie McGovern

Absolutely loved this middle-grade novel by Cammie McGovern. Chester, a chocolate lab, has failed his certification as a service dog due to his fear of loud noises, to his mother’s dismay. Chester feels badly at displeasing his family so. But his trainer, Penny, says he may still serve as a therapy dog, since those standards aren’t so rigorous. The family who adopts Chester needs him to work with their ten-year-old son, Gus, who is autistic and can’t speak. Chester must help Gus fit in at his school and out in the world. But Gus doesn’t seem to like Chester much. Until Chester finds a way to get through to his new best friend. It’s a beautiful story full of twists and turns and I found myself on the edge of my seat at several points, cheering for these two wonderful heroes.

Jeoffry gives this heartwarming, entertaining book for kids five delicious bonito flakes!

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Review of THE ONE AND ONLY IVAN, by Katherine Applegate

Our sister, Rhea, poses with our copy of the book. Ivan’s coloring on the cover kind of matches her coat 🙂

The One and Only Ivan is an excellent novel by Katherine Applegate, and it very deservedly won the Newbery Medal for children’s literature in 2013. Set in a small circus, it stars Ivan the gorilla, billed as “the Mighty Silverback” by Mack, the circus owner, Stella and little Ruby, the elephants, and a stray dog named Bob, who befriends them. Mack doesn’t treat the animals very well, unsurprisingly. Particularly the elephants, who are prodded with a claw stick, sometimes harmfully, into performing tricks. And they are kept in too-small cages. When the older elephant, Stella, becomes too injured to perform, and George begins beating sweet, young Ruby into submission so she will take over Stella’s tricks, Ivan becomes determined to save her.

Ivan happens to be an artistically inclined gorilla, who can make drawings with crayons and paint. Mack tries to capitalize on Ivan’s talents by selling the paintings. But Ivan outsmarts him and uses the artwork for something more.

Ivan is based on a real gorilla, also named Ivan, who lived in a tiny cage in a shopping mall circus and, after public outcry, was moved to Zoo Atlanta. He also painted, signing his name with a thumbprint.

This is a wonderful book, and the fact that it’s based on a true story, makes it all the more compelling. Non-human animals do have talents, complex inner worlds, and dreams, and they don’t like being in cages any more than humans do.

We give this one five bonito flakes, and can’t wait to read more books by Ms. Applegate!

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Review of DOG LOST, by Ingrid Lee

I saw this book in my local library and was immediately drawn to the title and cover. Written in 2008, and based on a true story, it’s a powerful tale of a pit bull puppy, Cash, who, in protecting her best friend, MacKenzie, angers the boy’s father, who hauls her off to the middle of nowhere to fend for herself. At first everyone is scared of the dog, since she’s considered a “dangerous breed,” but Cash is no vicious predator. Not only does she refuse to fight when she is captured by the leader of a horrid dog-fighting ring, but she ends up saving the lives of more than one human, as well as that of a cat used as bait by the dog fighters. Written by a Canadian writer, Ingrid Lee, the book was published at a time when Ontario was considering whether to ban the breed, which would have led to the euthanasia of entire shelters. Cash is a shining example of the ludicrous cruelty of such a law. And yet, I know from the Best Friends documentary, “The Champions,” about the rehabilitation of the Michael Vick dogs, that Ontario does have such a ban, so, sadly, it passed. I remember Montreal was deciding whether to enact something similar a year or two ago. It was put on hold then. This book reminds me to check up on that. I really hope it never passed. As “Dog Lost” shows, it is people who are the villains, not the dogs.

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Review of PAX, by Sara Pennypacker

I loved this book so much. Couldn’t put it down. I’ve been reading so many really compelling children’s books. In some ways they are more full of compassion and heart and soul than many adult books these days.

This is the story of a boy and his little fox named Pax. The boy finds Pax as a small cub and raises him to fox-hood. The setting is rather timeless and placeless. The boy and his father live in the country somewhere near a forest and there’s a war about to begin. But it’s not the Civil War era; it’s a modern war because the father, an engineer, is called upon to create land mines. When the father must leave, he takes the boy to live with an elderly relative, who can’t live with animals. This means the boy must drop Pax off in the forest.

As Pax tries to learn how to survive in the wild, the boy worries that Pax will get killed. The story alternates back and forth between the two, as they search for each other. I won’t say how it ends but it’s full of truth and beauty and love. Both characters stole my heart and I will never forget Pax.

I recently visited Joshua Tree National Park. In their gift shop I found a photo of a fox. It reminded me of little Pax, so I bought it and hung it on my wall. 🙂

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Review of FENWAY AND HATTIE by Victoria J. Coe

I found this book at my library. Cover was just so enticing 🙂 And I’ve read so many wonderful middle-grade books lately. I read it in one sitting and loved it. Fenway a is jolly, spunky little Jack Russell terrier (and who doesn’t love a terrier!) who loves his “short human,” Hattie. One day the family moves from their Boston-area apartment to the suburbs. Fenway is deeply confused. Where is his beloved dog park? Why is the new floor where Hattie puts his food bowl so slippery and scary? And, most importantly, why is Hattie so interested in her new next-door neighbor and in learning to play softball and not with him? Fenway must find a way to get Hattie back. He tries all kinds of things that don’t work, some of which make you just cringe knowing how much they will backfire – such as eating her new mitt! Makes sense though – if the mitt is taking your best friend from you, well then you must destroy that blasted mitt! But finally, he does it – he and Hattie both adjust and find happiness in their new lives.

This book was cute and funny, but it also made me think about how difficult it can be for pets to adjust to a new environment. One time when we got to our new apartment, my cat wandered around for five seconds then went straight back into her carrier and cried in it all night. I couldn’t entice her into bed with me for anything. Moves can by discomfiting and even scary for everyone in the family, most of all those who can’t be told in so many words not to worry, that everything will be okay. Take time and care with your fur babies!