“Won Ton? How can I / be soup? Some day, I’ll tell you / my real name. Maybe.” A cat given the undignified name Won Ton after he is adopted begins his narrative by describing life at the shelter before he is chosen by a boy and adapts to life in his new home. Lee Wardlaw’s cleverly told story is written as a series of haiku divided into sections that mark the animal’s progress (“The Shelter,” “The Choosing,” “The Car Ride,” “The Naming,” “The Adjustment”). Marvelous details of catlike behavior and attitude are showcased in a story about one particular cat who is thrilled to have found a home and, above all, someone to love. “Eavesdropping, I hear: / 'My cat.’ Great Rats! Don’t you know / yet that you’re 'My Boy?’” The slightly comical edge to Eugene Yelchin’s gouache and watercolor illustrations is well matched to Wardlaw’s narrative. (Ages 5–9)

Sometimes funny, sometimes touching, this adoption story, Won Ton, told entirely in haiku, is unforgettable.

Nice place they got here.

Bed. Bowl. Blankie. Just like home!

Or so I've been told.


Visiting hours!

Yawn. I pretend not to care.

Yet -- I sneak a peek.

So begins this beguiling tale of a wary shelter cat and the boy who takes him home.