Meggie Ramm

Round, pink Batcat just wants to enjoy their snacks and their videogames without being bothered, so when a ghost shows up, Batcat visits the island witch to ask for help getting rid of it. The witch sends Batcat on a journey to fetch ingredients, and Batcat encounters both bats and cats (and griffins).

Throughout, Batcat interacts (hilariously) with the narrator (in caption boxes). The end suggests a sequel to come.

Quotes

"Did you think ghosts were only ghostly? You don't have to be just one show more thing, y'know." (graveyard ghost to Batcat, 55)

"All I wanted to do was stop being haunted. That's all. And now everyone is telling me I'm not enough. Maybe I'm not...Maybe I should let the ghost have my house so I can fully commit to being a cat. Or a bat. I wonder if catfish have this problem." (61)

"You do not have to be one thing or the other."
"You can just be you."
"Also , best not to listen to the cats. They think they know everything. I can assure you, they do not." (the griffins, 69)

[fun wordless montage of the witch and Batcat preparing the potion, 76-77] show less

A delightful sequel, equal to the first book! Batcat and Al are pals and roommates, but sometimes Batcat still likes "me time," so they head off to the beach...but the beach is covered with mermaids, because something in the water is leaching the color out of their tails. Batcat reluctantly agrees to investigate in return for fish tacos, then has a very frightening day when they visit a kraken and a cloud of flying fish, and wind up stranded on a rock in the ocean. Fortunately, Al comes to show more check on Batcat, and a ghost sailor (Captain Yargh) helps them return to shore. They're pursued by a vampire penguin who sucks color instead of blood, and thus the original problem is resolved. Humor (I love Batcat's interactions with the narrator), adventure, and themes of identity and fear/courage.

Back matter includes an author's note, nonbinary facts, how to draw Batcat at Al, and emanata and acknowledgments.

Quotes

"Youre the helpful adventuring type!" (mermaid to Batcat, 11)

Narrator in caption box: A perfect plan. What could possibly go wrong?
"HEY!! WHAT GIVES?!" (34)

Narrator: As Batcat sat on the rock, dark thoughts started to creep in.
"CAN THEY NOT?!" (56)

Batcat: "Today was filled with scary things. But I made it back here. And everything is OK. It's kind of like what the narrator said."
Al the ghost: "The narrator? What narrator?" (85) show less

It's another delightful and very funny episode on the Spooky Isle!

Batcat and Al are excited for the annual Night Festival: Al is going to enter the cooking contest, and Batcat is going to enter the eating contest! Batcat helps Al decide what to cook, and Al hopes to win...until literally bumping into the griffins the night of the festival and learning that they have won the cooking competition "thrice." Still, Al's butternut squash nachos are popular (even with the three griffin kids!), and show more Batcat's magic fork keeps track of how much he eats, so they both hope to be winners at the end of the night...

*spoilers*

...but the griffins win a fourth time, and Batcat gets a terrible (if predictable) stomachache. They keep each other company through their bad feelings, and a final interaction with the griffins puts a happier spin on the night.

Back matter includes a recipe for nachos, and a page spread on sound effects in comics. show less

In the fourth BATCAT book, Batcat and Al eagerly await a wish-granting falling star that comes once a year. Al plans to wish for a nose, but Batcat's wish is secret. But when the star falls, it doesn't grant anyone's wish, and Batcat gets the blues - literally. Al finds the island witch to help, and she tells him about Batcat's connection to the star, and their grandfather, so Al can help Batcat feel better. Funny and sensitive.

Quotes

"Easier looking for something you lost than wishing for show more something you never had." (Captain Yargh to Al at the Lake of Lost Things, 37)

"I think it's hard sometimes for folks to talk about things that make them sad." (witch to Al, 55)

But some places are scary o matter how many times you visit, like graveyards and dentists. (68) show less