Pete the Cat, a lanky, skinny-tailed, indigo-hued kitty with big, almond-shaped, yellow eyes, is sauntering down the street in his brand-new lace-up sneakers and singing: "I love my white shoes, I love my white shoes, I love my white shoes." Oh, no! Pete steps in a large pile--actually, an entire hill--of strawberries. "What color did it turn his shoes?" Everyone will know: "RED!"
On the next page, against an all-red background, there is a full-page view of Pete's foot, clad in its now-red shoe. "Did Pete cry? Goodness, no!" In fact, there's Pete thinking "everything is cool!" He just changes the lyrics a bit, singing, "I love my red shoes . . ." as he continues on his laid-back, mellow stroll. Pete steps next in a pile of blueberries, and then a large puddle of mud. Scratchy pen and inks outline the bold-colored watercolors of unflappable Pete against a background of primary colors. When he steps in a bucket of water that washes the colors away, he ambles along, his sneaks squeaking, singing, "I love my wet shoes . . ." The moral of his story? "No matter what you step in, keep walking along and singing your song . . . . . . because it's all good."
THEMES: CATS. MUSIC. STORIES IN RHYME.
Pete the Cat, a lanky, skinny-tailed, indigo-hued kitty with big, almond-shaped, yellow eyes, is sauntering down the street in his brand-new lace-up sneakers and singing: "I love my white shoes, I love my white shoes, I love my white shoes." Oh, no! Pete steps in a large pile--actually, an entire hill--of strawberries. "What color did it turn his shoes?" Everyone will know: "RED!"
On the next page, against an all-red background, there is a full-page view of Pete's foot, clad in its now-red shoe. "Did Pete cry? Goodness, no!" In fact, there's Pete thinking "everything is cool!" He just changes the lyrics a bit, singing, "I love my red shoes . . ." as he continues on his laid-back, mellow stroll. Pete steps next in a pile of blueberries, and then a large puddle of mud. Scratchy pen and inks outline the bold-colored watercolors of unflappable Pete against a background of primary colors. When he steps in a bucket of water that washes the colors away, he ambles along, his sneaks squeaking, singing, "I love my wet shoes . . ." The moral of his story? "No matter what you step in, keep walking along and singing your song . . . . . . because it's all good."
TIPS & EXTRAS: Go to www.harpercollinschildrens.com/petethecat to listen to or download the author telling the story and singing Pete's song, which you won't get out of your head for a long time. Your kids will learn this interactive story the first time you read it aloud and continue to sing it and tell it to everyone. "Goodness, no!" will become part of your family's vocabulary. You can ask them what other colorful, squishy things Pete might step in, and sing about them. On the website, there's a template of Pete's shoes you can print out and cut out to play "Pin Your Shoe on Pete the Cat." And when life is getting you stressed, step back and consider Pete's go-with-the-flow way of looking at the world. It's all good.
THEMES: CATS. MUSIC. STORIES IN RHYME.
