[BOOK REVIEW] Mrs. Katz and Tush by Patricia Polacco

Title:  Mrs. Katz and Tush

Author:  Patricia Polacco

Genre: Friendship / Family

Year Published: 1992

Year Read: 2011

Publisher: Dragonfly Books

Source:  Library

Content Rating:  Ages 5+  (Nothing Objectionable)

Buy on:  Amazon  //  Book Depository 

Patricia Polacco has written so many children’s books that show the true meaning of friendship and “Mrs. Katz and Tush” is no exception!  “Mrs. Katz and Tush” is a children’s book by Patricia Polacco which is about an old Jewish woman named Mrs. Katz whose husband had died recently and she ends up making friends with a young African-American boy named Larnel and a stray cat named Tush.  “Mrs. Katz and Tush” is a truly wonderful tale about the importance of true friendship that children will enjoy for many years to come!

Patricia Polacco has done it again in creating a book where multicultural friendships are shown in a positive light. What I really loved about Patricia Polacco’s writing is how she truly shows Mrs. Katz’s pain when she lost her husband and I truly felt sad for her since I have lost many loved ones during my lifetime and I felt the pain that Mrs. Katz felt.  I also loved the connection that Mrs. Katz has towards both Tush and Larnel as with Tush the cat, Mrs. Katz did not care how odd Tush looked without its tail, she still loved Tush for just being her true companion.  I really loved the relationship that Mrs. Katz has with Larnel and what I loved about their relationship is that they both extremely different from each other (Mrs. Katz is Jewish and Larnel is African-American) but they formed such a strong friendship with each other and that made me feel all warm inside!  My favorite part of Larnel and Mrs. Katz’s relationship is when they started relating to each other about their family history and it was a truly powerful moment in the book when Mrs. Katz told Larnel that they are alike from each other since both their ancestors were faced with racism and prejudice during their times and it was that moment that brought Larnel and Mrs. Katz much closer towards each other.  I also enjoyed seeing Mrs. Katz show Larnel the Jewish traditions that she enjoyed doing such as celebrating Passover which truly shows how much she trusts Larnel.  Patricia Polacco’s illustrations are just as beautiful as ever as the images of both Mrs. Katz and Larnel are truly brilliant and memorable!  I especially loved the appearance of Mrs. Katz herself as she has white hair, is always wearing a colorful dress, and has a wise expression on her face, especially when she is relating her experiences in Poland with Larnel.  I also loved the appearance of Tush as he is a gray and black stripped cat that has no tail, but he still looks beautiful in my eyes!

Overall, “Mrs. Katz and Tush” is a lovely tale about true friendship that every child who love reading about multicultural friendships will enjoy for many years! I would recommend this book to children ages five and up since the length of this tale might be too much for smaller children and some of the Jewish phrases such as “bubeleh” and “kugel” might be too difficult for smaller children to understand.