Pete the Cat and the new guy /

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

From Kimberly and James Dean's bestselling Pete the Cat series comes a groovy story about new beginnings and new friends.

There's a new guy in town, and Pete can't wait to meet him. After all, more friends mean more fun. When Pete finally meets Gus, he realizes they're very different from each other...and that's what makes him cool. So when Gus starts to doubt himself, it's up to Pete to convince him that there's something everyone can do. Gus is special in his own way, just like Pete and just like you!

The message of accepting others and yourself shines through and is perfect for young readers learning to navigate friendship issues. Fans of Pete the Cat will delight in the rhythmic storytelling and fun repetition throughout the book.

The fun never stops--download the free groovin' song!

Don't miss Pete's other adventures, including Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes, Pete the Cat: Rocking in My School Shoes, Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons, Pete the Cat Saves Christmas, Pete the Cat and His Magic Sunglasses, Pete the Cat and the Bedtime Blues, Pete the Cat and the Cool Cat Boogie, Pete the Cat and the Missing Cupcakes, Pete the Cat and the Perfect Pizza Party, and Pete the Cat: Crayons Rock!

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Booklist Review

Pete the Cat has a brand-new next-door neighbor Gus, a platypus and he has never met anyone like him before. That's OK, though, because, as Pete says, I think being different is really very cool. The new friends spend a week trying to find things to do together, but Gus can't climb trees, leapfrog, or juggle. But just as Pete sadly exclaims, I wish there was something we could do, he hears the rockin' sound of a drumbeat from Gus' yard, and they find the solution: they can jam together all day long. Though the loosely rhythmic verse has an awkward beat, the welcome message of acceptance comes through loud and clear. Dean's now-iconic Pete is his usual big-eyed, spindly limbed self, and the addition of the goofy-looking platypus is sure to delight the many fans of the series.--Hunter, Sarah Copyright 2014 Booklist

Kirkus Book Review

Pete the Cat tries to find an inclusive activity for the "new guy" in town. Pete and his pals are jamming when the "new guy" moves in next door: It's Gus the platypus, who sports a backward baseball cap and a goofy smile. Professing eagerness to make a new friend (as always, it's hard to tell from his heavy-lidded, couldn't-care-less expression), Pete acknowledges Gus' physiological peculiarities by assuring him that "I think being different is really very cool." But how to include Gus? He can't climb like Squirrel, jump like Toad or juggle like Octopus. Despite Pete's encouraging if vague refrain"Don't be sad, / don't be blue. / There is something / everyone can do!"Gus, despondent, retreats to his house and consoles himself with his drum set. Pete exclaims, "He found something cool he can do with us!" The text is cast in a loose, poorly metered rhyme that dissolves into prose and then reforms with no apparent pattern. The message of inclusiveness is likewise incompletely explored. Why doesn't Pete ever just ask Gus what he likes to do instead of flailing about aimlessly? For that matter, why don't the Deans give Gus a personality? For all Pete's stated embrace of "being different," there is no attempt to develop or celebrate Gus' difference in any meaningful way. Lackluster text, muddy message, poor character development: not cool. (Picture book. 3-5) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Author notes provided by Syndetics

James Dean was born in 1957, in Fort Payne, Indiana. He attended Auburn University and completed an engineering degree, before eventually following his dream to of being a full-time artist. He became an Illustrator, and his collaboration with Eric Litwin led to the success of their book Pete the Cat and His White Shoes. He is the illustrator of all the books in the Pete the Cat series. Several of James Dean's Pete the Cat titles including Pete the Cat: Valentine's Day Is Cool, Pete the Cat: Big Easter Adventure, Pete the Cat and the New Guy, and Pete the Cat: Five Little Pumpkins made The New York Times Best Seller List in 2015.

(Bowker Author Biography)