Rocking in My School Shoes

June 27, 2011
In his previous outing, blue cat Pete proved his ability to roll with the punches when his white sneakers were accidentally stained red. Sporting the red treads for the first day of school (they match his electric guitar), Pete is again unflappable. "Pete has never been to the library before! Does Pete worry? Goodness, no! He finds his favorite book and sings his song." School setting aside, little differentiates this book from its predecessor. There's humor to be found in the deadpan expressions of Pete and his fellow cats as he sits with friends in the lunchroom, plays at recess, and solves math problems on the board. But whether the simple refrain and Pete's blasé attitude actually assuage anxious schoolgoers is another story. Pete's song is available as a download. Ages 3â7.

June 1, 2011

Pete, the strangely popular musical cat, is back (Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes, 2010), this time showing off all the things he can do in his school shoes.

"Pete is going to school, / and he sings this song: / 'I'm rocking in my school shoes, / I'm rocking in my school shoes, / I'm rocking in my school shoes.' " Readers follow the self-confident Pete through his day as he tackles each new experience. Never been to the library? "Does Pete worry? / Goodness, no!" He just reads in his school shoes. From the lunchroom to the playground, Pete eats, sings, paints, adds and writes. Repetitive refrains abound, giving children the chance to chime in, and there is also an opportunity to guess Pete's destination from clues within the text. As in Pete's first outing, there is not much here to get excited about. It seems to be all about the tune and the song that Pete sings. Luckily, the book includes a gift card with a link to a downloadable song (unheard). Dean's Pete is a hip, laid-back navy-blue cat in enormous high-top red sneakers and sometimes carries a red electric guitar. The long, skinny characters all have half-closed eyes, and all are devoid of facial expression.

(COPYRIGHT (2011) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

August 1, 2011

PreS-K-In this sequel to Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes (HarperCollins, 2010), Pete is enjoying a day at school. He explores the library, the lunchroom, and the playground, singing happily with each new discovery. As with the first book, this feline is unflappable. He doesn't worry about noise, confusion, or the unfamiliar and takes everything in stride. The problem with this book seems to be the target audience. The repetition and the simple concepts in the first book appeal largely to the preschool set. That same structure is present here, but a school setting that features a library, a lunchroom, riding a school bus, etc., would seem to indicate a child in kindergarten, who has probably moved beyond Pete. Dean's cartoon illustrations are bright and cheerful, although Pete alternates between walking erect with two sneakers and walking on all fours wearing four. Purchase if you service a large preschool population where the first title is popular, but elementary schools can probably pass in favor of something with a little more substance.-Grace Oliff, Ann Blanche Smith School, Hillsdale, NJ

Copyright 2011 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 14, 2013
Appropriately enough, Pete’s latest includes some valentines for readers: a large foldout poster, a sheet of stickers, and 12 punch-out cards. In the accompanying story, Pete starts out as a skeptic: “Valentine’s Day is not cool,” he tells his friend Callie. She responds that it’s her favorite holiday, and Pete needs no more convincing than that—as soon as he gets home, he starts making homemade cards. By book’s end, Pete has distributed valentines throughout his community; he forgets about Callie, but she’s understanding: “Hanging out with you... that’s way better than any card.” Just like Pete skateboards his way through town, he slides through these minor Valentine’s Day dramas effortlessly. Ages 4–8.

February 17, 2014
Pete the cat’s yellow, dead-eyed stare is always good for a laugh, and it’s even better when he’s wearing big white bunny ears, a buck-toothed rabbit snout, and a puffy white tail. It’s all in a day’s work for Pete after he agrees to lend the Easter Bunny a hand (“Find the eggs. Paint the eggs. Hide the eggs,” reads the note Pete discovers in his otherwise empty Easter basket). The story itself is quite thin—after painting the eggs, Pete quickly hides them and receives a “#1 Helper” ribbon from the Easter Bunny himself for his efforts (“Helping others can be lots of fun!” reads the tacked-on closing message). Readers are more likely to be drawn in by all the extras tucked into the pages, which include stickers, a foldout poster, and a dozen perforated Easter cards that can be removed and given away. Ages 4–8.

January 1, 2012
Guitar-playing Pete of Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes goes to school, introducing readers to the library, the lunchroom, the playground, etc. Without musical accompaniment the text can be numbing ("I'm reading in my school shoes, / I'm reading in my school shoes, / I'm reading in my school shoes"). The joyful art bursting with color rocks, though.

(Copyright 2012 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)