Module 2: Millions of Cats by Wanda Gag

Citation:
Gag, W. (1928). Millions of cats. New York, NY: Penguin Putnam Books.

Summary:
Millions of Cats by Wanda Gag, is a tale of a elderly man and woman who were in search of a pet to love and care for. The elderly man goes out searching for a cat and finds “Millions and billions and trillions of cats.” He decides to take them all home because he can’t decide on which cat he likes the most. When his wife sees all of these cats she convinces the man that they can only keep one. The cats fight to death and leave just one, whom the elderly couple decided to keep.

My Opinion:
This book is very interesting I did want to keep reading until the end. While I am not particularly fond the fact that they say in the book, “I think that they must have eaten each other all up.” I think the story is interesting and could teach students a little about math due to the repeating line about hundreds, thousands and so on. The illustrations are all in black and white but add to the story line well.

Reviews:

Breen, K. (2000). One hundred books that shaped our century. School Library Journal. Retrieved from http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA153035.html

School Library Journal

Gag, Wanda. Millions of Cats. Coward, 1928. Considered by many to have ushered in the age of the modern picture book, this Newbery Honor winner is characterized by innovative design and a strong storyteller's cadence.

Uses for the library:
This book could be used for a writing prompt mini lesson where you ask the kids if they have ever had a hard time deciding what to choose from and how they felt. The students could do a quick brain storm and then write 1 paragraph stating how they felt about the situation.