Ok, yeah, I overdid the 2020 Halloween season, so I'm taking it easy this year (the subsequent burn-out is part of the reason I stopped writing re-views for so long). I'll draw some ghosts and ghouls this year, but only in reasonable quantity ...which should be an easy promise given I really don't care much for Halloween. :P
Anyway, I heard y'all wanted an evil, spooky black cat for Halloween ...well, our subject today isn't at all spooky, but there might be a touch of evil in him somewhere. Either way, he'll have to suffice.
Today's subject is Blacky the Kitten, and with him comes a re-view of his book: 'Blacky' by C.M. Bartrug, and published by McLoughlin Bros.
My particular copy was printed in 1939. I discovered this book whilst shopping for vintage pencils on eBay. Its listing described the book thus,
"This Book Belonged To My Grandmother. She was a School Teacher and Passed Away at age 90. This Book Has been Stored For Many Years. May Have a Slight Musty Smell, Covers and Pages May be slightly dirty. Book Has No Markings and Binding a tear"
Take my money! :D
I bought the book (obv.); its musty odors, and those little mites vintage books often come with, were easily dealt with: the book, along with some baking soda, went into a plastic zip bag to chill in the freezer a couple days. ^_^
Anyway, my version of Blacky resembles the kitten on the pencil I drew him with (beginning to end; this card was not delineated).
Blacky is ready for his re-view now (so let's go!)
"Once upon a time there was a little black Kitty Cat named Blacky. He lived with his mother and two little sisters in the corner of Mr. Brown's big red barn. Now, Mr. Brown had a little daughter named Bette Anne, and every evening at milking time, Bette Anne gave the three little kittens a bowl of warm sweet milk for supper"
Cats and milk... that's as much an annoyance as rabbits and carrots. :p
For those who don't get it, cats are lactose intolerant (generally), and carrots aren't good for rabbits (in quantity), due to harmful sugars.
*strikes hero pose; the wind changes, blowing cape over his head* :P
Anyway,
"But one afternoon Bette Anne had a birthday party. And by the time the party was over she was so excited, that she forgot to give the three little kittens their bowl of warm sweet milk"
Methinks the text of this book has some punctuation issues. :P
Now, I should say I'm not going to copy the entire book here---this simple story (somehow) contains forty pages of text, so I'll be abridging from this point on.
Cutting to the chase, Blacky didn't approve of being forgotten by Bette Anne, and so voices his grievance for all to hear,
BLACKY: "Meow, meow! I'm so hungry! I want my supper!"
The two other kittens agree and so join Blacky's wailing.
MOTHER CAT: "'Now, children, don't cry! I know you are hungry. But it is time for all good little children to be in bed. I'm sure Bette Anne has been asleep for a long, long time, and I want you to go to bed, too ...I know that Bette Anne will bring you a large bowl of warm sweet milk for breakfast'"
That must have been some party---the last time I feel asleep at a party, it wasn't because I was tired! lol (and, uh, how old is Bette Anne, again?). :p
Anyway, the kittens obey and go to sleep. The next morning, Blacky wakes before anyone else, and, following his impatience, decides to set out into the farmyard to find breakfast on his own.
I can't say I blame Blacky---that Bette Anne is not to be trusted: shirking responsibilities; partying all day, and feeding milk to delicate kittens. Tsk! Tsk, I say, tsk! D:
Now, most of us have seen this story pattern before, and 'Blacky' makes no attempt to break the mold. Basically, our hero goes from animal to animal, asking a question and receiving the same or similar answers until the author meets the book's page quota. Examples include 'Are You My Mother?' by P.D. Eastman, and (loosely) 'There's No Place Like Home' by Dubravka Kolanovic.
So, what is Blacky's question? It's a doozy, and very insensitive (but also kinda funny ...to me ...because I'm a horrible person who doesn't deserve to live).
Anyway, here's how Blacky approaches the first in the chain of neighbors he'll meet throughout the book,
"First [Blacky] found Mrs. Pigeon keeping her little babies snug and warm. 'Good morning, Mrs. Pigeon', said Blacky. 'I'm so hungry! May I have one of your little pigeons for breakfast?'"
^^
"'Coo, coo,' answered Mrs. Pigeon. 'No, no! you naughty kitten. Of course you can't have one of my little pigeons for breakfast'. And she told her little ones to hide their heads quickly"
As I said, the story proceeds like this, with Blacky asking the moms of the farm if he can eat one of their kids ...at least Blacky's polite to ask first, and depending on the mom's mood, it's possible Blacky could have success (the lesson here is if you're a cub in Blacky's universe, don't annoy your mom ...not that you should otherwise, but let's not belabor the point).
As expected, the relentless Blacky is either shoo'd away or attacked by the moms, namely Mrs, Duck, Mrs. Hen, Mrs. Robin and Mrs. Cottontail.
Of the above-mentioned, Mrs. Cottontail is the most significant, in that she responds to Blacky (in part) with a swift kick, which sends him tumbling and gives him a tummy ache to add to his grievances. Mrs. Goose has the pleasure of lending her ear to Blacky's complaints of hunger and a sore tummy. Mrs. Goose suggests Blacky should stick to warm sweet milk, as it will satiate his hunger and remedy his ache.
...but where is Blacky to find warm sweet milk? He'll need to ask around!
Blacky's first stop is the pen of Mrs. Pig,
"'Good morning, Mrs. Pig', said Blacky anxiously.'I'm so hungry, and my tummy aches. May I have some warm sweet milk for breakfast? Mrs. Goose said that warm sweet milk will stop my tummy ache' 'Oink, oink,' said Mrs. Pig. 'No, no indeed! You can't have warm sweet milk for breakfast. I have only enough for my six little piggies, and they must grow big and fat for Bette Anne. Mrs. Sheep might give you some. She has only one baby lamb to feed.'"
And so, Blacky takes his breakfast plea to Mrs. Sheep and Mrs. Nanny Goat, respectively. After Blacky is denied by Mrs. Sheep, Mrs. Nanny Goat suggests that Blacky see Mrs. Cow ...as Blacky should have done to start with (after all, a desire for milk is what began this adventure). :p
Perhaps not surprisingly, Mrs. Cow denies Blacky as well, on the grounds she needs all the milk she has for her calf and Bette Anne.
If Blacky were a bit more clever, he would've explained that a portion of Bette Anne's milk does in fact belong to him. Instead, Blacky continues to beg, for he has no one left to ask, and nothing else can cure his tummy ache. The calf feels sorry for Blacky, and agrees to share his portion of milk with him if Mrs. Cow approves,
"'Moo, moo', said Mrs. Cow kindly. 'Of course you can have part of my baby's breakfast, if he wants you to have it.'"
Satisfied at last, Blacky enjoyed his breakfast before retiring under a crabapple tree.
It's unknown whether Bette Anne fed the other kittens (or if Blacky's mother and sisters wondered about him at all), but such is what imagination is for.
Anyway, what is the lesson that 'Blacky' teaches us?
First, don't be a Bette Anne: feed your pets before you party like it's 1940 (and be sure the food you provide is appropriate).
Next we learn that while it's always good to be polite, asking nicely doesn't mean a mom will let you eat one of her kids ...or let you nurse off her. :p
I could cloudwatch some other lessons, such as one against impatience, and/or another in favor of persistence, but I don't believe 'Blacky' intended to impart anything beyond the incidental. If there is anything lasting one can take away from the story of Blacky, it is this:
Cubs, don't annoy your moms! ...lest they invite Blacky over for breakfast! (MUHAHAHA!)
I had that book when I was a toddler. We would have a black cat named Willie when I was that age as well. He was the last cat we had who we didn't neuter, and he would grow up to be big and muscular.
https://www.amazon.com/Wheres-Willie-Golden-beginning-reader/dp/B0007G3MXE I had that book when I w
Willy had coarse fur and spent a lot of time outdoors. In fact, our former next door neighbor got a female brown and white kitten named Tiffany, and she was small but still had coarse fur and spent a lot of time out of doors. I'm sure that Tiffany was in fact Willy's daughter.
Willy had coarse fur and spent a lot of time outdoors. In fact, our former next door neighbor got a
