Who Will Bell the Cat?

Lush, cinematic illustrations add drama to the late McKissack’s retelling of Aesop’s classic fable. After a group of warmhearted barn mice nurse a cat back to health, the cat, named Marmalade, turns on them, terrifying them as they gather to figure out what to do. Her chilly metallic eyes, savage teeth, and curved claws are genuinely scary. Debut illustrator Cyr shows the conclave of mice lit by a stained-glass window as Smart Mouse speaks from a matchbook lectern. The mice secure a sleigh bell and attach it to a collar, but fastening the collar to Marmalade’s neck proves impossible. Even a menacing pack of rats can’t help. Then a new human family moves to their farm. While the mice recognize that depending on human help may backfire (“When you use a tiger to get rid of a lion, what will you do with the tiger?”), they decide that it’s the lesser of two evils. The African-American child who discovers both Marmalade and the collar proves that they made the right decision: “A collar with a bell on it. Just perfect for you.... Now, I’ll always know where you are.” Ages 4–8. (Apr.)