Comet's Nine Lives

What the heck even was this book… Sure, we all know the myth that cats have nine lives, but are we really going to have a story wherein the protagonist feline dies on the page over and over again? This is a Jan Brett picture book for children, so of course the deaths are not graphic in any way, but the whole tone of the story is a touch cavalier about the subject matter and seeing little ghostly cats leave the page as the story progresses is a little much. Ironically, the seaside setting of the tale is one of Brett’s most visually cheerful, being filled with bright ocean waves, seashells galore, and a cast of smiling dogs to populate the coastal town that cat Comet explores, but the themes of lost lives makes this tale far scarier show more than her wintertime tales due to its stark realism. At least Comet manages to find his forever home at the island’s lighthouse, with a hopefully smarter cat companion who can help him keep his final life for quite some time. An interesting take, but I wonder why Brett chose to write this story… show less

Jan Brett writes a beautiful story but the true star of the show are her gorgeous illustrations. I love how the stunning art in the central picture is augmented by the secondary story being told in the images in the side bar. She is a tee master of her craft.

This book is a fun tale of a cat who seems to be a little too clumsy. The illustrations of the story bring the reader to the beach and are so detailed, one can almost taste the salty air. The character of comet is fun and Brett does a wonderful job at making the many time comet dies, lighthearted. This story is also about finding out where one belongs and feels most comfortable, something people seek for most of their lives. In the end comet finds his place and it gives the reader hope that there is a place in life for them as well.

Comet is a curious and clumsy cat living in a dog eat dog world. As Comet wonders around town trying to find a place where he will fit in; he has accidents thus the countdown of his nine lives begins. By the end of the story Comet will have experienced many different aspects of life and possibly find a place he can call home.

This is a funny book because it is about a cat in a place where there are only dogs. He looks everywhere for a companion but cannot find one anywhere. To make things even worse he is losing his nine lives way to quickly. At the end of the story he finally finds his cat companion and spends his last (long) life with his new friend. This book would be good for counting because it talks about each of the cats nine lives. Also, it has some great illustrations. I would recommend this book to older elementary school kids.

This book was a great read, but I'm not sure I would read it to younger children because I found the story to be humorous, but sad that the cat technically kept dying throughout the book. I liked the author's humorous approach to death. We all have heard about how cats all have 9 lives, so it's funny to see how Comet loses his lives. I think the illustrations are beautiful and it's funny to see that all of the characters that should be humans are depicted as animals in this book. I think that the author's message in this book is to enjoy life as it comes to you like Comet did.

This is a simple but hilariously amusing story. The story is about Comet and how he is choosing to live his lives. The main theme of the book is that you have to choose to live your life with the time you are given.

I liked this book. For example, it takes on a humorous approach to death. Death can be a tough subject for younger readers, but this takes a more holistic approach to how you can live.

I also really liked the illustrations. I always find Jan Brett's illustrations to take a detailed approach to her illustrations. The illustrations in this book certainly did not prove otherwise. I found the ocean to be detailed, and Comet's fur to be so textured I wanted to pet him. This book is a fun approach to life.