Grampa's Cat

Ted McGee is an associate professor of English at St. Jerome’s
College, University of Waterloo.

This book gives expression to the affection grandchildren feel for their
grandfather’s cat. The verses focus not on the various qualities of
the cat, but on each child’s special way of relating to it. The comic
tone of the work as a whole comes primarily from a reversal of normal
expectations—this is a cat that does not like mice—and secondarily
from the mice themselves, which are playful, gregarious cartoon figures.

Despite some overly busy backgrounds, the illustrations are the
strength of this book. The verses are too often marred by vagueness of
emotion and character (niceness being the cat’s most frequently noted
trait), by awkward rhythms and forced rhythms, as in this verse
concerning Sam: “Sam likes to pet her. / She purrs very nice. / But
Sam really wishes / She’d catch him some mice.” Even in this
demanding little stanza form, there are opportunities for precision and
verbal play; unfortunately, Grampa’s Cat does not make the most of
them. Not a first-choice purchase.