Cats, dogs, and other fauna

Teaching Pre K-8, Feb 1998 by Hurst, Carol Otis

There are all sorts of avenues to explore when animals are leading characters in children's books.

Two books in this month's column Alex and the Cat and Mean Margaret - can be put with some of your own choices and made into a dandy science/literature research unit for a wide range of grade levels. It's also a chance to get kids to focus on character rather than plot in some fiction.

Cats and dogs. The reissue of Alex and the Cat by Helen Griffith (Greenwillow, 1997, ISBN 0-15241-4) is the first book in our discussion. Because it really gets into the innate characteristics of two species - dog and cat - we can use it as a stepping stone into the characteristics of many breeds of both species, and from that, into analyzing books in which dogs and cats appear as main characters.

You might like to start a discussion about which animal the author likes best in Alex and the Cat, and then in other books.

Donald Hall's IAm the Dog; IAm the Cat, illustrated by Bart ry Moser (Dial, 1994, ISBN 0-8037-1504-8) also shows the varying perspectives of the two species.

Bragging books. Two picture books edited by Michael J. Rosen may lead students to write about their own pets in a similar manner. The two books are Purr.. Children's Book Illustrators Brag About Their Cats (Harcourt Brace, 1996, ISBN 0-15-200837-3) and Speak! Children's Book Illustrators Brag About Their Favorite Dogs (Harcourt, 1993, ISBN 0-15-2778489). After looking at the books, students may want to write about their own pets or those of other authors.

Look at some picture books in which a dog or a cat takes on human characteristics. Martha is vocal in Susan Meddaugh's Martha Speaks (Houghton, 1992, ISBN 0395-633133), Martha Blah Blah (Houghton, 1996, ISBN 0-395-79755-1) and Martha Calling (Houghton, 1996, ISBN 0-395-69825-1).

More than animal. You may not wish your pet could speak, but are there other human qualities you wish it had? The ability to clean its own litter box? Open its food cans? Play soccer? Some picture books about dogs and cats have characters that are more human than animal.

Start with the ones that just begin the transition. Gene Zion's Harry the Dirty Dog (HarperCollins, 1956, ISBN 0-026866-2), for instance, has a great many doggy qualities; however, his dislike of his sweater in No Roses for Harry (HarperCollins, 1958, ISBN 0-06-026890-5) displays a human reaction.

Even closer to human is Carl in the series of wordless books by Alexandra Day. In addition, Gloria, in Officer Buckle and Gloria by Peggy Rathman (Putnam, 1995, ISBN 0-39922616-8), is also quite human. Go on to find picture books in which a dog or a cat is almost completely human: the dog in John Burninghams' Hey! Get Off Our Train (Crown, 1989, ISBN 0517-576384), for example.

Start making Venn diagrams of two or more characters from books, putting their characters in the circles and the questions they share in the intersecting circles.

Animal characteristics. The second book, Tor Seidler's Mean Margaret (HarperCollins, 1997, ISBN 0-06205090-7), presents a wide range of wild animal characters, each with qualities both human and animal. We can begin by looking at animal literary characters for their natural and unnatural qualities.

Examine some of the books about various breeds of dogs and their qualities. Choose ideal dogs for various families, real and literary. If Brian, from Hatchet were to have a dog with him, what breed would be best? How about a dog for Jonas in The Giver? That society allows no pets, of course, but given what we know about Jonas, don't you hope he gets a pet in Elsewhere? If so, what sort should it be? For the lower grades, is there a breed that would get on well in Madeline's French orphanage?

There are lots of good books with dogs and cats already in them. Readers and movie viewers of Sheila Burnford's The Incredible Journey (Dell, 1990, ISBN 0-553-05874-6) should be able to list the qualities of the two dogs and the cat that helped and hindered the 250-mile trip.

Mean Margaret. Broaden the base by turning to Mean Margaret next. It may remind some readers of Janwillen Van De Wetering's Hugh Pine (Morrow, 1992, ISBN 0-688-11799-6). (If it doesn't, feel free to remind them yourself.) Both books deal humorously with woodland animals and their interaction with humans. In both books, characters are true to their animal natures in some respects while having some human characteristics. Separating the two can bring out good character analysis.

Now, blur the lines. In spite of the title Mean Margaret, one of the main characters in the book is Fred the woodchuck. While reading the book aloud, begin listing his characteristics. He keeps a very tidy home. (Are real woodchucks good housekeepers?) He prefers a solitary existence - at least, in the beginning of the book. (Do woodchucks live in communities or alone?)

Margaret, of course, moves from totally primitive to a more human character during the course of the book. Do other characters in books remind you of animals? Which ones? Which characters?