Goodyear the City Cat

The creator of Marcella and the Moon and The Oak Tree this time tells of a cat with wanderlust. Goodyear sits by the window and looks longingly at the city world and the bay just beyond his street. One day he paws the window latch open, jumps to a balcony, leaps to a tree and then down to the sidewalk. In the park he plays with yarn, sits in a boy's lap by the pond, and at the pier he inspects a fisherman's catch of the day. Then he meets an old man and sails in his boat for the rest of the day, wetting his whiskers with sea breezes and watersprays. But Goodyear's real discovery is that home sweet home has the best lap of all. Coats's windows on the world come in various shapes and sizes, inviting air and light to the tiny corners of brownstone apartments, and the indoor and outdoor life in the city is portrayed as a warm and friendly environment. But there are stylistic inconsistencies: the picture of a beautiful sunset, sending radiant shades of color into the sky, contrasts with that of a tritely stylized midday sun (a simple circle surrounded by a fiery fringeout of place in a realistic landscape); while stiffly posed people somewhat mar an otherwise courageous outing and contented return. Ages 5-8. (August)