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Spot the Cat #1
Spot, the Cat
Henry Cole shows us a day in the life of a cat named Spot. Spot sneaks away from home by way of an open window to go on a wordless journey through the city. Follow Spot as he weaves through busy city streets, visits a farmers market, wanders into a park full of kite-flyers, and beyond. But while Spot is out on his adventure, his beloved boy owner is looking for him—seeming to just miss him every time. When all seems almost lost, Spot’s story reminds us that there’s always a way back home.
32 pages, Hardcover
First published March 1, 2016
About the author
Henry Cole
262 books156 followersHenry Cole was a celebrated science teacher for many years before turning his talents to children's books. He has worked on nearly one hundred and fifty books for children, including Nesting, Unspoken, Big Bug, A Nest for Celeste, Jack's Garden, and On Meadowview Street. Henry loves being outside where he can sketch and write.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 215 reviews
May 24, 2017
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Spot, the Cat, is about to embark on an outdoor adventure when he suddenly leaps out his apartment window and into the world. Each page takes the reader on a exploration of the city and Spot is located on each page if you only look. Follow Spot’s journey through a farmer’s market, across a bridge, through a park and beyond as he weaves through the city. Spot’s owner is worried. Will he ever return?
This is very similar to a Look and Find book in that you have to search for Spot on each page. All the illustrations are black and white and Spot is somewhere new each time. Children will spend a little time finding him as some pages are more difficult than others with trick illustrations added in. It’s a great book for conversation and children love it. I think it’s great for parent-child reading.
5*****
Spot, the Cat, is about to embark on an outdoor adventure when he suddenly leaps out his apartment window and into the world. Each page takes the reader on a exploration of the city and Spot is located on each page if you only look. Follow Spot’s journey through a farmer’s market, across a bridge, through a park and beyond as he weaves through the city. Spot’s owner is worried. Will he ever return?
This is very similar to a Look and Find book in that you have to search for Spot on each page. All the illustrations are black and white and Spot is somewhere new each time. Children will spend a little time finding him as some pages are more difficult than others with trick illustrations added in. It’s a great book for conversation and children love it. I think it’s great for parent-child reading.
5*****
July 13, 2016
Extraordinary work by Henry Cole. Caldecott contender for sure and practically everyone is darn near ignoring it. Check it out People! It is fantastic!
June 24, 2019
A spotted cat, lured away by the sights and sounds of the city just outside his apartment window, sets out adventure-bound in this charming wordless picture-book. Wending his way through the town, the cat explores everything from the canal to the park, the art museum to the massive train station terminal. His boy, in the meantime, dismayed to find him gone, sets out to track him down, posting missing posters and running all over town. Returning home discouraged, he is elated to discover his beloved feline at the window, asking to be let in again...
Like his earlier wordless picture-book, Unspoken: A Story from the Underground Railroad , Henry Cole tells his story here entirely through his detailed pencil illustrations, creating a lovely city-scape that comes alive on each page. As the title Spot, the Cat implies, the reader can search for the wandering feline on each two-page spread, adding interactive enjoyment to an already entertaining tale of a wandering feline and his worried boy. Recommended to young cat-lovers, as well as to those who enjoy wordless picture-books.
Like his earlier wordless picture-book, Unspoken: A Story from the Underground Railroad , Henry Cole tells his story here entirely through his detailed pencil illustrations, creating a lovely city-scape that comes alive on each page. As the title Spot, the Cat implies, the reader can search for the wandering feline on each two-page spread, adding interactive enjoyment to an already entertaining tale of a wandering feline and his worried boy. Recommended to young cat-lovers, as well as to those who enjoy wordless picture-books.
August 8, 2021
No words needed, the pictures tell the story of Spot, the cat's adventure. It was a lot of fun to find Spot on each of the exquisitely drawn pages.
May 16, 2016
Wordless book that reminds me of "I Spy." You have to really study the pictures to find the boy and his cat. It is really fun making up stories to wordless books. This one has a nice play on the word "Spot." The cat has an adventure in the city while the boy worries about him being lost. Detailed illustrations in black and white of city and town life.
February 9, 2019
Fun little book with terrific and terrifically detailed monochromatic illustrations of a cat making its way through an urban neighbourhood, with its boy frantically looking for it.
April 17, 2016
In this wordless picture book, a cat named Spot heads out of an open window and into adventures in the city. The book is done in black and white illustrations with lots of fine details, perfect settings for a small spotted cat to get lost. It is up to the reader to find Spot on each page, something that can be challenging on some pages, even for adults. Spot visits areas throughout the city from a farmer’s market to a park filled with kites in the air. While he is adventuring though, his owner is looking for him, putting up lost cat posters around the neighborhood and missing him each time.
It is the art here that makes the book so enchanting. The details are so well done that as a reader I kept getting lost in what others on the page were doing. The world the cat and the boy explore on the page makes sense. It is all cohesive, filled with people going about their days in ways that read as natural and real. In other words, it’s a joy to read and explore the pages whether you are able to spot Spot or not.
A great seek-and-find book but also a great wordless picture book with a story too. Appropriate for ages 3-5.
It is the art here that makes the book so enchanting. The details are so well done that as a reader I kept getting lost in what others on the page were doing. The world the cat and the boy explore on the page makes sense. It is all cohesive, filled with people going about their days in ways that read as natural and real. In other words, it’s a joy to read and explore the pages whether you are able to spot Spot or not.
A great seek-and-find book but also a great wordless picture book with a story too. Appropriate for ages 3-5.
June 14, 2016
Spot the Cat leaves his human and goes off on a wordless adventure in the big city. Is he really on every intricate double-page spread? I actually couldn't find him a couple of times! I might have wished for a little more plot, but this will delight seek-and-find fans who have done all of Waldo and I Spy.
October 27, 2016
Follow a cat's adventure outside as you try to spot him in the crowded places. This is a search and find type story with detailed illustrations ~Ashley
May 23, 2019
Gorgeous illustrations
This lively little book holds beautiful illustrations in a beautiful style. Spot the cat is wandering about town, worrying his person, before headed home for the evening. I love the black and white drawings, and how difficult at times it was to find Spot throughout his wanderings.
This lively little book holds beautiful illustrations in a beautiful style. Spot the cat is wandering about town, worrying his person, before headed home for the evening. I love the black and white drawings, and how difficult at times it was to find Spot throughout his wanderings.
April 26, 2019
Love this wordless, illustrated book. My family had so much fun going through spotting the cat.
April 10, 2016
Although things turn out fine in the end, this is a vivid reminder why no one should ever leave windows open in a house where a cat lives. Naturally, while his human companion is preoccupied--yikes! with a book!--Spot ventures outside and has quite an adventure. As he strolls along the sidewalk, through city streets, in the park, alongside a museum, and even to the train station, the boy with whom he lives has realized that Spot is nowhere to be found, and is desperately searching for him, missing flyers in hand. Readers will smile as they note the many times that the boy has just missed Spot as he enjoys his grand adventure, oblivious to the dangers that surround him or his friend who is looking for him. The pen-and-ink illustrations are marvelously detailed and force readers to look very hard to find Spot. Thank goodness everything turns out okay, and Spot and boy are reunited just as both return home at the same time. Because the author/illustrator has chosen to use no words in telling his story, readers will need to imagine what the characters and thinking, feeling, and possibly saying. There is so much to notice on each page, which encourages repeated reading. I am especially fond of that next to last illustration showing the boy's book, facedown on the chair where he left it in his haste to find his cat.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 11, 2016
Without sharp eyes and patience, this is nothing. With at least the latter, it's still not much. Training for a jigsaw puzzle or a hidden object video game? Lesson: use window screens!
October 12, 2016
no words and yet a story is told plus a search for the cat hunt. sometimes it's nice to just enjoy pictures with a child :)
January 20, 2018
I picked this up from a display at my local public library.
Oh, my, gosh.
Spot, the cat, goes out the window on an adventure. No words needed here. The beautiful black and white drawings make you look for Spot.
Don't worry. All's well that ends well.
Oh, my, gosh.
Spot, the cat, goes out the window on an adventure. No words needed here. The beautiful black and white drawings make you look for Spot.
Don't worry. All's well that ends well.
April 27, 2024
Lili enjoyed trying to find the cat on the very busy black-n-white illustrated pages. Fun, but hurt my old eyes..heeheehee
August 14, 2019
Fun wordless picture book
October 23, 2018
Spot, the Cat is a wordless children’s picture book about a cat named Spot who hops out a window when he saw a bird and goes on an adventure in the city while his owner, a little boy, searches for him.
My thoughts:
Another fun picture book. 😊 This one I liked because of the play on the title — the title tells us that the book is about a cat named Spot, but it’s also an instruction to spot (point out) the cat on each page — and because it includes an activity.
Because there are no words, readers have to pay attention to the images to understand how the story progresses. I love that about wordless illustrated books because it places emphasis on the illustrations. Spot, the Cat is made a bit humorous by the fact that Spot is in each area the boy searches, but the boy never sees him. Instead, it’s up to the reader to point out where in each scene Spot is. I think that’ll make reading this book a fun activity for kids. It’s like finding Waldo.
Art style:
My favorite thing about this book is the illustrations. They seem to have been done in pencil but instead of shading, hatch marks are used to add gradation and texture to the drawings. I’m not usually a fan of hatch marks because they can seem messy sometimes, but I like how they are used here, neat and contained.
The search for Spot takes us around a city that strongly reminds me of Washington, D.C. I love this about the book because we get a bunch of illustrations of various buildings but mostly of row houses. I love how they line up along the street and how unique they all are in the book. It’s exactly as they are in any city.
Of course, the fun part of this book is finding Spot in each scene, which are often laid out in a 2-page spread. There’s at least one red herring I noticed in a few scenes that was subtle and almost got me.
Overall: ★★★★☆
This was fun and I loved the illustrations of the buildings.
As posted on Zezee with Books.
My thoughts:
Another fun picture book. 😊 This one I liked because of the play on the title — the title tells us that the book is about a cat named Spot, but it’s also an instruction to spot (point out) the cat on each page — and because it includes an activity.
Because there are no words, readers have to pay attention to the images to understand how the story progresses. I love that about wordless illustrated books because it places emphasis on the illustrations. Spot, the Cat is made a bit humorous by the fact that Spot is in each area the boy searches, but the boy never sees him. Instead, it’s up to the reader to point out where in each scene Spot is. I think that’ll make reading this book a fun activity for kids. It’s like finding Waldo.
Art style:
My favorite thing about this book is the illustrations. They seem to have been done in pencil but instead of shading, hatch marks are used to add gradation and texture to the drawings. I’m not usually a fan of hatch marks because they can seem messy sometimes, but I like how they are used here, neat and contained.
The search for Spot takes us around a city that strongly reminds me of Washington, D.C. I love this about the book because we get a bunch of illustrations of various buildings but mostly of row houses. I love how they line up along the street and how unique they all are in the book. It’s exactly as they are in any city.
Of course, the fun part of this book is finding Spot in each scene, which are often laid out in a 2-page spread. There’s at least one red herring I noticed in a few scenes that was subtle and almost got me.
Overall: ★★★★☆
This was fun and I loved the illustrations of the buildings.
As posted on Zezee with Books.
August 28, 2019
Regardless of how many times it has been attempted, we all continue to try to get as close to something in the natural world as we possibly and safely can. We know deep down inside that as soon as our nearness makes the creature feel unsafe, it will leave. Most people who have a sincere respect and affection for all living things in nature try to convey their true intentions of "do no harm" but the need for survival is fortunately a strong instinct.
There is a long standing notion, with good reason, cats can't help but stalk birds and birds will keep their distance. Spot, the Cat (Little Simon, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division, March 1, 2016) conceived and illustrated by Henry Cole begins with a bird and of course, a cat. It is a quest, a tour, and a search. Without words readers can see how many stories become parts of a larger story.
My full recommendation: http://librariansquest.blogspot.com/2...
There is a long standing notion, with good reason, cats can't help but stalk birds and birds will keep their distance. Spot, the Cat (Little Simon, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division, March 1, 2016) conceived and illustrated by Henry Cole begins with a bird and of course, a cat. It is a quest, a tour, and a search. Without words readers can see how many stories become parts of a larger story.
My full recommendation: http://librariansquest.blogspot.com/2...
June 16, 2016
Spot sneaks out the window one day and travels around the city. His owner, a young boy realizes Spot is gone. Worried, he creates and puts up "Missing Cat" posters. After a discouraging day, the boy returns home to find Spit scratching at the now closed window, wanting to be let in.
The pictures are detailed pencil sketches. I particularly enjoyed the different perspectives and views of the neighborhood. It's also a bit of a hide-and-seek book- Spot can be found on just about every page. A fun book for kids with big imaginations.
The pictures are detailed pencil sketches. I particularly enjoyed the different perspectives and views of the neighborhood. It's also a bit of a hide-and-seek book- Spot can be found on just about every page. A fun book for kids with big imaginations.
March 4, 2016
3.5 - I really wanted to like this book more, possible give it 4 stars. The illustrations are amazing and I loved the storyline. However, because it was strictly in black and white, it got lost. I think pops of color would have helped this, similar to Float or Sidewalk Flowers.
May 1, 2016
A beautiful wordless picture book, that has almost a Where's Waldo sense to it, as I searched the black & white ink drawing pages full of detail trying to spot the cat on each spread as a cat goes off on an adventure through the city and his boy tries to find him.
July 12, 2016
Caldecott award possibility here
March 8, 2016
Gorgeous illustrations.
March 15, 2016
This is a beautiful wordless black and white picture book. This is basically the Where's Waldo for cat lovers. I also love the play on words with the title. Kids will love it!
August 1, 2016
Remarkably dull story. The "Where's Waldo" aspect is weak - this is not one of the better books of this kind.
December 2, 2016
Lovely, detailed illustration and I enjoyed the search for Spot the cat.
January 12, 2017
Ladybug loved this beautiful book.
July 23, 2018
Through intrinsically detailed, wordless, black-and-white pen drawings, Henry Cole leads us on a hunt that so many readers can identify with— that of a young boy trying to “spot” (pun intended) his cat Spot. The story begins on the title page, where we see Spot, the cat, on the windowsill eying a bird outside. Next thing we know, Spot leaps out the window after the bird, starting his adventure around the city. Using a mix of vignettes, full page drawings, and full spreads, we watch Spot explore the city, but it takes a focused eye to find him on each page. Cole throws lots of curveballs to his readers, though, such as numerous spotted dogs and long-distance views of crowded places like farmer’s markets, museums, and train stations.
Before too long, his owner, the boy, realizes that he is gone and sets out to find him. It took me a few readings to realize that the boy is also camouflaged into many of the illustrations as he searches for his lost cat, too, taking the seek and find nature of this story to another level. In addition to looking for Spot and his owner, readers will delight in the details Cole includes in each illustration. This is a book that allows readers to discover something new with each reading!
Readers who enjoy wordless picture books will enjoy this, as well as any fans of seek and find books and pet owners. Publishers target this book for ages 4-8, but my 2.5 year old enjoyed the seek and find aspect of it. My five-year-old loved “rereading” and looking for new details she hadn’t noticed before (such as the fact that the boy is hidden in many pages as well!).
Before too long, his owner, the boy, realizes that he is gone and sets out to find him. It took me a few readings to realize that the boy is also camouflaged into many of the illustrations as he searches for his lost cat, too, taking the seek and find nature of this story to another level. In addition to looking for Spot and his owner, readers will delight in the details Cole includes in each illustration. This is a book that allows readers to discover something new with each reading!
Readers who enjoy wordless picture books will enjoy this, as well as any fans of seek and find books and pet owners. Publishers target this book for ages 4-8, but my 2.5 year old enjoyed the seek and find aspect of it. My five-year-old loved “rereading” and looking for new details she hadn’t noticed before (such as the fact that the boy is hidden in many pages as well!).
March 27, 2018
Copyright: 2016
Number of pages: 32
Book format: print
Reading level: Pre-k-3; GR level N/A
Genre: fiction
Lit requirement: wordless book
Spot, the Cat by Henry Cole is a wordless picture book that tells the story of a cat named Spot who leaps out the front window of its home. The little boy who owns the cat looks all over the city for Spot, but seems to have no luck. He even puts up "lost cat" posters. Will he ever find Spot?
The title is a play on words. Spot is the name of the cat, but the title can also be read as "spot the cat" which means to find him. The illustrations in this book are all black and white, but they are very detailed and cover multiple double-spreads. A lot of the pictures are landscapes of the city where the reader has to look around to see if they can spot Spot. I rated this book four stars because I think it is an eye-catching book, that readers may enjoy finding Spot in the big 'ole city.
Number of pages: 32
Book format: print
Reading level: Pre-k-3; GR level N/A
Genre: fiction
Lit requirement: wordless book
Spot, the Cat by Henry Cole is a wordless picture book that tells the story of a cat named Spot who leaps out the front window of its home. The little boy who owns the cat looks all over the city for Spot, but seems to have no luck. He even puts up "lost cat" posters. Will he ever find Spot?
The title is a play on words. Spot is the name of the cat, but the title can also be read as "spot the cat" which means to find him. The illustrations in this book are all black and white, but they are very detailed and cover multiple double-spreads. A lot of the pictures are landscapes of the city where the reader has to look around to see if they can spot Spot. I rated this book four stars because I think it is an eye-catching book, that readers may enjoy finding Spot in the big 'ole city.
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