Anna Hrachovec

First sentence: Catside up,
catside down,
cat on a turntable, spinning around.
Under a piano,
over the moon,
swept high and away
by a cat-shaped balloon.
Inside a sock,
surrounding a pie,
lolling about on some catnip nearby.

Premise/plot: Catside Up, Catside down is a book of prepositions. It is a concept book--technically, definitely. I mean there is a grammar lesson there for elementary-aged students. (Or for readers of all ages who need a bit of a refresher course). But it is also a super-adorable show more cat-themed, arts-and-craft themed picture book for readers of all ages to enjoy. The illustrations--are PRECIOUS, ADORABLE, SWEET, AMAZING.

My thoughts: I loved this one so much. I love, love, love, love, love all the crafted items. The cover is adorable--no doubt, no question--but each page only gets better and better. I love the art. I love the narration. I love the concept-lesson. I love the rhyming. show less

I'm a fan of Anna H's mochimochi creations and knitted multiple mochimochi cats (seven? eight?) for Christmas stockings in 2023, so I was curious and enthusiastic to see her first non-instructional work, this picture book for children. With cats!

I got our public library to order it in for me, because I don't really have a need for another picture book in my unwieldy collection -- or so I thought. Catside Up is Absolutely Unbearably Cute and I covet it for my knitting bookshelf. The fact that show more patterns for most of these cats and many of their knitted accessories (that piano!) are available for purchase (check Ravelry.com) so a knitter can re-create these adorable scenes makes it even better.

I'm a little concerned though in case my grandchildren love this book as much as I do and see it as a catalogue (ooh. pun) to order tiny cute knitted cats and all their accoutrements from their resident knitting Nonna. But they are fun to create and I wouldn't mind much. Okay, not gonna lie, I would be thrilled!

Only quibble: in the phrase "swept high and away by a cat-shaped balloon", away is printed bold as a preposition and by is not. In this sentence, away is an adverb and by is the preposition. I don't think it matters to the intended audience for the book.

Update on my wishlist/read but unowned dilemma: I bought it! show less

This book of opposites goes beyond the usual vocabulary, and indeed provides a glossary of antonyms (rude/polite, plain/fancy, shiny/matte, hasty/cautious), but the real star here is the adorable art, photographed with different kinds of yarn, polyester stuffing, and double-pointed knitting needles.

Cute, quirky toys to knit. I made the TV set and the Confused Moose. Both came out well, instructions were correct and easy to understand. Pieces are a combination of knitting in the round and knitting flat, some seaming required for all the patterns.