It's Like This, Cat is about a boy who lives in New York in the sixties. He is lonely and only has one friend and all his friend wants to do is talk to girls. The cat's name is actually "Cat" because he couldn't come up with anything better. He and the cat became best friends. He makes friends at his new school. He even has a girlfriend.

This story was OK for me. Not to sure what the outcome was supposed to be? Not sure what the book/author was trying to say to the reader. We can all relate to owning pets and also going to a new school and making new friends.

As an extension idea, we would discuss the relationship between the boym and the cat, to compare it to our relationships.

This, like a lot of teen books, is the story of a young person growing up - in this case, a 14-year-old New York City boy is discovering how to better interact with his parents and still be his own person. There's nothing outstanding about this book, but it's very ordinariness makes it special. The cat, whose name is Cat, is well-drawn and humorous. I enjoyed the book. ( )

GREAT BOOK!!

Lexile: 810
Reading Recovery: 26
DRA: 44
Fountas Pinnel Guided Reading: T