School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 1--An accident-prone house cat learns to love the cone that has been placed around his head for safety. When Jeremy the cat wakes up one day to discover that he has been fitted with a cone, he is utterly distraught. It blocks his view, bends his whiskers, and really puts a crimp in his super-cat style. After some trial and error, Jeremy discovers a way to use the cone to his advantage, but then it's time for the cone to be removed. Jeremy, a blue-and-white cat of indeterminate age, is drawn with sly, sleepy eyes. He finds ways to bend the cone to his will, first discovering its usefulness as a funnel for milk, then as a spider catching device, and even as an acoustic aid. Jeremy's thoughts are distinguished by the use of bold text, and colorful illustrations featuring Ava, the small human who Jeremy mostly tries to avoid, fill the story with light and levity. Readers will chuckle at the sight of a cat waiting in line to receive his share of birthday cake. VERDICT Purchase where pet stories are popular, although the morals of adapting to change and making the best of a bad situation are sure to resonate with all young readers.--Laken Hottle, Providence Community Lib.
Publisher's Weekly Review
Jeremy the cat has a cone around his neck courtesy of the vet (the cause is not specified), which has turned him into a shadow of his former nimble, sneaky self. "Now he was knocking into doorjambs and backing his way down the stairs with all the grace of a fat squirrel," writes author Howden (5-Minute Amazing Animal Stories), striking a tone of haughty weariness. "He didn't smell so good either." But you can't keep an imperious feline down for long: Jeremy discovers that the cone can actually function as a useful funnel, holding bits of food he manages to scrounge (including ice cream from a birthday party), and, in one of the funniest illustrations, an entire cushion's worth of stuffing. Pared-down vignettes by Mok (Grandmother's Visit) capture both the inner workings of Jeremy's mischievous mind and his comical prowling. While he makes no bones about his feelings for his owners ("Of course, a gathering of little humans can be a nightmare for a cat," the narrator says as the birthday party gets underway), readers will find it hard to resist the prickly charms of this expressive sourpuss. Ages 3--7. (Aug.)
Kirkus Review
After awakening at the vet's wearing a cone, a cat discovers it holds advantages. A period of disgruntled adjustment finds Jeremy "knocking into doorjambs and backing his way down the stairs with all the grace of a fat squirrel." He unsuccessfully engages in usual pursuits: spider-stalking, "redecorating" (i.e., un-stuffing the couch), and hiding from "little human" Ava. Fortuitously, during Jeremy's tabletop encounter with Ava's breakfast leftovers, the cone catches the bowl's edge, tipping Fruity O's and milk into both Jeremy's mouth and cone--a snack "for later!" Jeremy's conical capers culminate at Ava's birthday party, where he joins a line of children waiting for ice cream. Ava's distracted dad plops a scoop right onto Jeremy's head--and into that catchall cone. Naturally, the day of liberation soon arrives, when "one of the tall humans" whisks the cone away. Resuming his usual antics, Jeremy wonders if anything will rival his "glory days with the Cone." The answer comes immediately, in a mishap involving a fly, a potted houseplant, and the draperies. A last illustration delivers the visual punchline: Cone Cat's back, sporting a bandaged forepaw. Howden's wry telling is matched by Mok's simple pastel illustrations, accented with red and gold. Children appear with varied skin tones and hair textures, uniformly D-shaped mouths, and dot eyes. Ava presents Asian. This amusing, essentially one-joke tale should resonate with cat-loving kids and families. (Picture book. 3-7) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
In support of the notion that every obstacle is an opportunity, Jeremy the cat soon discovers that the clear cone that has been put around his head may bend his whiskers and make it impossible to lick himself--but it turns out to be a grand receptacle for spilled cereal, furniture stuffing, and even, wowza, dropped ice cream. He's even a little wistful when it's finally removed: "Will anything ever compare to my glory days with the Cone?" Unfortunately, he doesn't get much chance to find out, as one wild romp around the house later he finds himself with a cast around one paw and the cone reattached. Though readers may wonder why Jeremy had to wear the cone in the first place (there's no sign of the surgery or injury that usually calls for such a measure in Mok's tidy, spacious, cat-centered domestic scenes), they'll applaud the resourceful ways he turns it to unintended uses. Here's a worthy companion for Nick Bruel's Bad Kitty, Jack Gantos' Rotten Ralph, and other perversely lovable feline bad behavers.
