Ellen J. Pilch wrote the two books you see above, Prancie’s Prayer and I Am Not A Skunk. I was unable to get photos of Franklin with the books so I used Franklin’s blankie as a background sans Frankie. Ellen has also contributed to the anthology, Black Cats Tell All. Ellen’s charming blog about cats, “15 and Meowing” can be found here.
My reviews:
PRANCIE’S PRAYER by Ellen J. Pilch
A cat gets a new home at Christmas time!
It’s a cold winter and a cat has been left in a forest to fend for herself. The sad kitty roams until she finds a house where the people are outside, decorating for Christmas. She’s hesitant to approach them and curls up to sleep in the manger scene, but the next day she’s still cold, hungry, and homeless, so she begins to meow at the door.
As the story unfolds we see that the people are kind, the spirit of the Christmas season will prevail, and the cat will get a forever home. Based on the author’s experiences of adopting stray cats, the book ends on a note of sweetness. It’s an excellent story for children, showing them that even in a world that can be cold and harsh, kindness does exist. Nicolas Peruzzo’s illustrations work well with the text. This book would be good for any time of year, but of course it’s perfect for the Christmas season. Here’s the link to Amazon to get Prancie’s Prayer
I AM NOT A SKUNK by Ellen J. Pilch
Who’s out there? A skunk? Or a cat?
This story opens when a housecat is abandoned and left outside. She walks around hungry and sees some nice new people working in their yard, but . . . due to being black-and-white, she’s declared a “skunk” by one of the adults. There’s a happy ending when the child finds a way to prove that the “skunk” is really a cat.
I like this book as a story for children for several reasons. Based on the author’s own adoption of stray cats, it shows children that animals they see outside may sometimes be in need of food and homes. There are life lessons in the book, for instance, never jump to conclusions based on quick first impressions and appearances, and never doubt the intuition and ingenuity of children. The illustrations by Nicolas Peruzzo are vibrant, and I like the way he depicts cats.
I think this book would be great for households with young children, but also for adults. As an adult I thought it was both touching and funny. Here’s the link to Amazon to get I Am Not A Skunk
Franklin did supervise this post while lounging on me. It looks like he’s sleeping on the job, but he’s actually working hard . . .
I’d like to do more book reviews . . . there are several I have promised but I am very late, a year or two in some cases. That’s because my staying power has gone way down, I now don’t have the kind of energy I need to either read or compose writing in the evenings. That was the time when I used to get a lot done. So please bear with me if I should have done a review of anyone’s book(s) and I haven’t. I’ll try to get to everyone eventually. This also impacts my ability to get around and comment. I enjoy all the marvelous blogs I’m following and I wish I could comment on them all every day. As it stands, it’s getting harder for me to comment even once in awhile. But even if I don’t comment often or ever, if I “like” your posts it means I really do like them! I’m trying to both re-arrange my schedule and hope for the better!
Weird abstract pictures, and kittens, are coming soon, I hope!
Oooo! I didn’t know about these books. Thank you for your review.
My pleasure, Kally, glad you liked the reviews and books!
I have both books and enjoyed them very much. My cat Katie and I both love Miss Ellen and hope she continues to write.
Katie Isabella at Blogspot
I’m glad you enjoyed the books, Carole and Katie Isabella! I hope Ellen will write more books too!
Those were some wonderful reviews, I have a signed copy of ‘I am not a skunk’ and love that book, but haven’t read ‘Prancies Prayer’ yet- I need to read it, thanks for the reviews.
Thank you for your kind words, and my pleasure doing the reviews, Catscue Catmom! I’m glad you enjoyed I Am Not a Skunk; I thought it was really cute and funny. I think you’ll probably like Prancie’s Prayer, too.
Charlee: “We like those books, especially the one about not being a skunk. I really identify with that one.”
Chaplin: “Really? Because I would think you’d be a little more defensive about cats not wanting people to think they’re skunks, since you’re a—”
Charlee: “I AM NOT A SKUNK EITHER, CHAPLIN!”
Ahahahaha, you guys! You’re a couple of funny kitties!
Those are the most precious books, aren’t they!? So cool that one of ‘our own’ blogging friends wrote them!
Thanks for taking some of your own time to make your review of them. Hope you are doing better and will feel a lot better , too.
I myself have some health issues, but by ‘clean eating, (mostly, LOL!), and taking various supplements I sure do feel fine, and am able to work and I know I do not feel like a senior! Ubiquinol at least 200mg a day is a good starting place. Some peeps with parkinsons find good help with 4oomg 2 -4 times a day. And at least 5000IU of vitD3 a day. (Expensive but worth it.)
They really are adorable books, Meezer’sMews&TerrioristicalWoofs! Thanks for the good wishes and tips, but sorry to hear you also have health issues. Many hopes that you continue to do well!
Don’t forget T.S.Eliot’s Old Possums’ Book of Practical Cats! 🙂
Oh yes, that was a good one! Read it long ago, re-read as background ambiance when I was writing my cat book.
OH I read the Prancie book and loved it so much I read it 2 more times. Would love to read and review the other book called I Am Not A Skunk in paperback/Hardback format. Looks like a fantastic read.
Ellen Pilch’s books are fantastic!!
Good to hear that you’ve read and enjoyed Ellen’s first book, Crystal! I’m sure you’ll enjoy I Am Not A Skunk. Reviews are always helpful for books, and I’ll be placing these on Amazon and Goodreads when time permits, this week I hope!
Wonderful reviews. I’ve read both of Ellen’s books and love them.
Thank you Eugenia, I appreciate your kind words! And I’m glad to hear you’ve read Ellen’s books!
Most welcome!
I love your reviews! Keep it going. Love the blog and I am a new follower here 🙂
Thanks Simple Little Things, I’m glad you enjoyed the reviews and I appreciate your kind words. I’ll try to do more reviews (it will be slow) but probably won’t post them here very often. I already have a few on Amazon and Goodreads, and I’ll be adding these two as soon as I can.
Thank you for these wonderful reviews. It means a lot to me when a talented writer (you) enjoys them. XO
Ellen, it was my pleasure to do the reviews! You have a deep understanding of the lonely plight of abandoned cats and a flair for conveying it. Thanks for the kind words, it meant a lot to me that you liked my book, too. XO
These sound like beautiful children’s books from Ellen. Thank you for reviewing them, Leah!
My pleasure, Lavinia!
I will have to buy those books when my grandson is old enough to read to.
Cool! I bet he will like them, they are so precious!
I have no doubt about that.
Reminds me of how my favorite books when I was a kid always seemed to be about cats!
Very cool, FACE Foundation! I actually can’t recall any about cats when I was a kid. I mostly remember books about dogs, and horses. Nowadays it’s a different “story” entirely, I read many books about cats, and I even wrote a couple myself.
I loved Socks by Beverly Cleary and J.T. by Jane Wagner…to name just a couple!
Thanks FACE Foundation! I looked up both those books and they both do sound like they are excellent! I’m wondering if there was a lack of cat stories for children in the time period I was growing up (a long time ago) or if I just didn’t encounter them somehow.
I love Ellen! We loved Prancie’s Prayer!
Ellen rocks! We love her and her books too!
(BTW I didn’t mean to comment twice on your post today! I went back when someone else commented and my comment seemed to be missing, so I thought I had forgotten to post it! Yikes. lol!)
I think you deserve another chance!
I suspect you’re right, thanks, Lauren!
We all love Ellen and her books really are very special.
Ellen is a sweet person for sure Brian, and her books are charming!
We appreciate you. Take good care of yourself. Thanks for sharing whenever you share.
Thanks so much for the kind and encouraging words, Sharony, I appreciate it!
Grate reeviewss Miss Leah!! Yore werth THE wait! Miss Ellen iss a furry guud riter an shee has guud moralless…umm no wait ‘moralss’ inn her storiess!
Franklin lookss like he iss meddytatin inn his foto, mew mew mew….
**purrss** BellaDharma an ((huggiess)) LadyMew too
Pee S.: Pleese do not presshure yoreself Miss Leah…LadyMew does that an then shee needss to rest even more…bloggin iss apposta bee FUN!! 😉
Thanks BellaDharma and LadyMew! I’m glad you liked the reviews and that you like Ellen’s books! I have only recently begun writing reviews again, it’s been a long ole time since I wrote them in high school and college, lol. You are so right, we really should work at our own pace on these websites, it’s so much more enjoyable when it’s fun and relaxing! So LadyMew should rest whenever needed, too. BellaDharma will keep us both reminded!
Miss Ellen iss a guud riter an shee makess peepell happy with her bookss! Just like you do Miss Leah!!
LadyMew iss beein furry guud ’bout doin her ‘do thingss’ an then restin…mee iss keepin a guud eye on her 😉
It’s good that she can count on you, BellaDharma!
Mew mew mew all wayss Miss Leah! All wayss! 😉