The Little Red Cat Who Ran Away and Learned His ABC’s (the Hard Way)

This gloriously fun escapade from McDonnell follows the misadventures of the eponymous red cat, who dashes out the front door of his home, only to be set upon, almost instantly, by an alligator, bear, chicken, and dragon. The book is wordless, other than capital and lowercase letters that correspond to each new character or event, creating a guessing game for readers in the process. In one scene, the pursuers and pursued are slipping and sliding on a patch of ice for I; a page turn, and they’re swinging from vines in a jungle. A king and his daughter get involved, parachutes manifest after a tumble off a cliff (“Nnnnnnnn Oooooooo!”), and there’s even a bathroom break. It’s teeming with visual wit, and McDonnell’s cartoons illustrate the emotional dramas of the chase with telegraphic clarity. Ages 3–6. [em]Agent: Henry Dunow, Dunow, Carlson & Lerner. (Sept.)