I have a cat-crazy daughter who loves everything to do with cats. Cat books, especially. So we’ve been curators of the best cat books — picture books and chapter books. I hope you and your cat lover enjoy these books as much as us!
Cat Picture Books
They All Saw a Cat by Brendan Wenzel
Cat by Matthew Van Fleet, photographs Brian Stanton
What Will Fat Cat Sit On? by Jan Thomas
Spot the Cat by Henry Cole
Miss Hazeltine’s Home for Shy and Fearful Cats by Alicia Potter, illustrated by Birgitta Sif
Cat Heaven by Cynthia Rylant
Yoda: The Story of a Cat and His Kittens by Beth Stern, illustrated by Devin Crane
Cat Secrets by Jef Czekaj
There Are No Cats In This Book by Viviane Schwarz
The Cheshire Cheese Cat by Carmen Agra Deedy and Randall Wright, illustrated by Barry Moser
There Are Cats in this Book by Viviane Schwarz
Simon’s Cat vs. the World by Simon Tofield
Dragon’s Fat Cat by Dav Pilkey
Glamourpuss by Sarah Weeks, illustrated by David Small
Frank and Laverne by Dave Whamod and Jennifer Stokes, illustrations by Dave Whamod
The Cat Who Walked Across France by Georg Hallensleben
Those Darn Squirrels and the Cat Next Door by Adam Rubin, illustrated by Daniel Salmieri
Busy Kitties by John Schindel and Sean Frazen
Maya and the Lost Cat by Caroline Magerl
Cat at Night by Dahlov Ipcar
Splat the Cat Storybook Collection by Rob Scotton
Professor Astro Cat’s Frontiers of Space by Dominic Walkman, illustrated by Ben Newman
Kettle, the Cat Who Composedby Leslea Newman illustrated by Amy June Bates
The Fire Cat by Esther Averill
Kitty Cat, Kitty Cat, Are You Waking Up?by Bill Martin Jr., Michael Sampson, illustrated by Laura J. Bryant
Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes by Eric Litwin and James Dean
Grumpy Cat by Britta Teckentrup
Maine Coon Haiku by Michael J. Rosen, illustrated by Lee Anthony White
If You Give a Cat a Cupcake by Laura Numeroff, illustrated by Felicia Bond
Square Cat by Elizabeth Schoonmaker
Joy by Yasmeen Ismail, illustrated by Jenni Desmond
Rhythmic and rhyming, this is an exuberant celebration of kitten play filled with lots of onomatopoeia! “Zoom-zoom, zim-zam, clip-clop, hip-hop, what a trip–don’t stop!” shows the kitten pulling over a lamp. After a romp through the house, the kitten is kicked out by the dog, then found by his mama.
Cat Chapter Books
Jenny Linsky and the Cat Club by Esther Averill
Bad Kitty by Nick Bruel
Kitty’s Magic: Misty the Scared Kitten by Ella Moonheart
Stick Cat: A Tail of Two Kitties by Tom Watson
Kasper the Titanic Cat by Michael Morpurgo, illustrated by Micahel Foreman
Socks by Beverly Cleary
Grumpy Cat by Britta Teckentrup
Won Ton: A Cat Tale Told in Haikuby Lee Wardlaw, illustrated by Eugene Yelchin
Ottoline and the Yellow Cat by Chris Riddel
The Curious Cat Spy Club by Linda Joy Singleton
The Cat Who Came In off the Roof by Annie M.G. Schmidt and David Colmer
Pounce! National Geographic Kids
You can train cats?! Tips and strategies beyond litter box training will astonish you. Roll over, beg, high-five? Who knew!? This book is chock-full of great information and ideas plus problem solving and enrichment. Full-color photos, beautiful layouts, plus a wealth of information make this an engaging, all-encompassing book that every cat owner needs.
How to Speak Cat: A Guide to Decoding Cat Language by Aline Alexander Newman and Gary Weitzman
Cats of Tanglewood Forest by Charles de Lint, illustrated by Charles Vess
The Nine Lives of Jacob Tibbs by Cylin Busby, illustrated by Gerald Kelley
Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the Worldby Vicki Myron
How to Draw Cats by Barbara Soloff Levy
Sorry I Barfed on Your Bed by Jeremy Greenberg
Our Wild Tails: The Adventures of Henry & Baloo by Cynthia Bennett
You’ll love this amazing story. Bennett’s family adopts Henry and he starts out as a mountain dog who loves to hike and camp. But, he had severe separation anxiety — hyperventilating and refusing water and food. After three years, the family decides to give Henry a companion, a kitten named Baloo. The two become the best of friends, hiking together, sleeping together, and playing together. Baloo often rides on Henry’s back — which is adorable! Primarily filled with gorgeous photographs as well as some quotes and narration, you can’t read this without wanting to adopt a dog and kitten together and hope they become friends like Henry and Baloo.
I Could Pee on This: And Other Poems by Cats by Francisco
(A few of the poems are questionable for kids.)
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Elizabeth Schoonmaker says
Hi Melissa,
What an honor for Eula Square Cat! Squarely purrfect! Thank you!
Elizabeth Schoonmaker
Square Cat
Aladdin Books
Square Cat ABC
http://eulathesquarecat.blogspot.com/
@Eulasquarecat
http://elizabethschoonmaker.blogspot.com/
Denise Fleming says
My book, “Mama Cat Has Three Kittens ” is no where to be found on this list. So sad. I am sure it was an oversight as it is chochfull of cats and kittens. Lol.
Melissa Taylor says
oh, thanks! I will add it.
Lee Wardlaw says
Me-wow! Thanks for including my book Won Ton – A Cat Tale Told in Haiku! (You might also want to take a peek at the companion title Won Ton and Chopstick – A Cat and Dog Tale Told in Haiku!) Purrs, Ms. Lee Wardlaw =^..^=
Melissa Taylor says
great, I will! Thanks, Lee!