The Cat That Was Left Behind - C. S. Adler

The Cat That Was Left Behind

By C. S. Adler

★★★★☆

Summary

Chad is a foster child who has been transferred so many times he is not expecting to stay with the Sorenics past the summer months.  His mother, April Anne, has promised year after year that she would come for him.  Chad would like nothing more, when he is devastated by a letter telling him that she is getting married and doesn’t want him any more.  Chad feels like the cat he has spent all summer taming that was tossed aside by another family.  He is eventually open to the Sorenics and can finally see their open arms welcoming him to their family, not as a foster child but as an adopted son.

Review

This is a great story about fitting into a family group, and what learning what true family is all about.  Chad must find his place in the world, just as we all must learn to transition from being told what to do all of the time to making our own decisions, and accepting the rewards and consequences for those decisions.  I would recommend this book for 4-8^th graders.

Author Website

http://www.c-s-adler.com/

Technical Stuff

Adler, C.S. The Cat That Was Left Behind. Clarion Books, New York. 1981

ISBN 0-395-31020-2

Courtyard Cat - C.S. Adler

Courtyard Cat

by C.S. Adler
★★★☆☆

Summary

Lindsay is eleven years old and tasked with taking care of Garth, her 3 year old brother, for the summer while her mom works and her dad goes to school.  They had to move to the city to be closer to Garth's doctors, as Garth had previously been in an accident that disfigured his face.  Lindsay is angry that she has to take care of him, that she had to move away from her friends and that she can't leave the courtyard of their apartment building.

Even though life seems impossibly rough, a cat named Sapphire and the task of saving her from the landlady's clutches brightens their otherwise dull summer days. 

Review

At first this was a slow read but as I got into the book, it touched my heart.  I would recommend this book for 4th-7th grade readers.  It has a little mystery and gives the reader lots of personal connection points such as struggles with money, parents working and in school, taking care of siblings and pets, and much more.  

Author Website

http://www.c-s-adler.com/

Technical Stuff (from Amazon)

• Age Range: 8 and up 

• Hardcover: 172 pages

• Publisher: Clarion Books (September 18, 1995)

• Language: English

• ISBN-10: 0395711266

• ISBN-13: 978-0395711262