Cat Nap by Brian Lies

Reviewed by Jeanne

A sleeping kitten is awakened by the scurry of a mouse, and the chase is on! But this is no ordinary chase: they’re running through the Metropolitan Museum and darting in and out of works of art as they go in this absolutely charming picture book by Caldecott Honor Award winning artist Brian Lies.  The first piece is an Egyptian carving, then on to an illuminated manuscript, and then other works, including an African mask, a stained glass panel, and a Georgia O’Keeffe painting.  Both cat and mouse take on the characteristics of the art, appearing as statues with a Mexican ceramic dog and as pen and ink near a Japanese drawing. 

While the storyline is simple and has a fun repeated phrase, the art is more realistic while still being fun itself.  It’s really a delight. There is so much attention to detail in this book, from the jacket cover to the actual book cover underneath, not to mention little art bonuses all around.  I especially loved all the images of the sleeping cat around the title page, as well as the different types of art used to make the letters in the title.

I don’t usually review children’s picture books for the blog but this time I couldn’t resist.  There have been a number of picture books on this theme and I have enjoyed many of them.  This one stands out to me because the images are so playful and there’s so much attention to detail.  I also love that the author didn’t choose the most famous works but instead chose representative works.  A handy key in the back identifies the real object found in the Met, with some information about it.

What I really, REALLY love about this book is the author’s note in the back.  He has photos of his process: he actually made replicas of the art to go along with his art kitten and mouse so they all fit together.  He explains that while he could have taken a photo of the art and then digitally put Dylan (his Russian Blue / Siamese cat mix) in the picture, just as people are now using computers and AI to create lots of things.  As he says, “But where’s the satisfaction in that? The computer created it, not us.”  He points out the fun of creating things on your own, be it a picture or a story or a statue.

That’s what this book is really all about:  the joy of creation. 

This is a book I will treasure.  And just maybe, I’ll try to do a little painting of my own.