Cat Girl's Day Off

March 12, 2012
“I was a freak from a family of freaks.” High school sophomore Natalie “Nat” Ng has a “Talent” she’s not proud of: the ability to talk to cats. Her younger sister is a “supergenius” with chameleonlike abilities; her older sister is proficient in truth divination and levitation, and has X-ray vision; and her parents work for the Bureau of Extrasensory Regulation and Management. When a film crew comes to Nat’s Chicago high school to shoot a takeoff of Ferris Bueller’s Day Off things get fishy: the female star isn’t acting like herself, and Nat learns from a cat that celebrity blogger Easton West may not be who she claims to be. Along with her friends Oscar and Melly, Nat gets dragged into a whirlwind adventure to find out what happened to the real Easton. Pauley (Still Sucks to Be Me) offers amusing insights into the minds of cats, snappy dialogue, and a fast-paced plot. Readers should easily relate to Nat, and cat-lovers in particular will find a lot to enjoy in this romp. Ages 12–up. Agent: Susanna Einstein, Einstein Thompson Agency.

April 1, 2012

Gr 6-10-With her ultra-lame Talent for feline communication, Natalie Ng has always felt out of place among her uber-Talented family of mind readers and supergeniuses. Then Regina Fedorka, a vengeful wannabe actress with a Talent for shape-shifting, kidnaps Hollywood starlet Victoria Welling and celebrity blogger Easton West. Regina hopes to impersonate her two hostages to further her own floundering career. The only witness to the crime is Easton's cat, Tiddlywinks (aka Rufus Brutus III). Assisted by her celeb-obsessed friends and a team of snarky felines, Natalie foils Regina's evil plot and saves the day-and a remake of the teen cult classic Ferris Bueller's Day Off. Perhaps Natalie's Talent isn't so dumb after all. Pauley's homage to Chicago and her favorite teen movie is entertaining, hilarious, and exceptionally creative. Populated with wonderfully eccentric and endearing characters, this lighthearted comedy will be an instant hit, especially among teen and tween girls. One thing is for certain-readers will never again look at their feline friends in the same way.-Alissa J. LeMerise, Oxford Public Library, MI

Copyright 2012 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 1, 2012
Grades 7-10 In a multicultural family bestowed with supernatural abilities, such as mind reading and laser vision, Nat Ng believes her ability to communicate with cats is more of an embarrassment than a special talent. Only her family and her two best friends, exuberant Oscar and drop-dead gorgeous Melly, know her secret. When a production crew filming a remake of Ferris Bueller's Day Off comes to the teens' Chicago high school, Nat reluctantly agrees to join her friends as an extra. Nat might believe that her talent is unexceptional, but cat-loving readers will thoroughly enjoy where her ability leads her as she tours through the same Chicago landmarks seen in Ferris Bueller. This title has the light, buoyant humor of a Meg Cabot book, with the same blend of superpowers and high-school life that won Pauley many fans with Sucks to Be Me (2008). And the cats! Helping, hindering, sniffing out bad guys, sneering at good guys, the cats shamelessly rule.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)

March 15, 2012
Natalie Ng, gifted with the Talent of being able to communicate with cats, embarks on an impetuous adventure as a movie riffing off film classic Ferris Bueller's Day Off is filmed at her Chicago-area high school. Natalie comes from a Talented family, but her two sisters and her parents all possess high-grade Talents such as blending like a chameleon, knowing when people are lying or having an ultrasensitive sense of smell. Still, Nat's unique ability to understand cats means she's the only one to hear celebrity blogger Easton's cat screaming for help because his owner has been kidnapped and replaced with a look-alike. Since there's no one else ready and able to rescue Easton, Nat and her pair of slightly off-beat friends take on the job. This leads to one perilous situation after another, many of them featuring the italicized thoughts--appropriately laconic and snarky--of the various cats that Nat seeks out for help. Her bumpy budding romance with classmate Ian adds an amusing love interest to the mix. The fantasy elements, solidly grounded in an otherwise real world, seem ever-so-believable. Lively conversation, strong characterizations and a fast pace make this a breezy read. The funny feline thoughts are catnip for the audience. A worthwhile adventure and an easy sell for feline fanciers who already know what their pets are saying. (author's note) (Fantasy. 11 & up)

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July 1, 2012
Nat Ng, who comes from a family with supernatural "Talents," is ashamed of her own Talent--she can talk to cats. In this humorous and zany novel, Nat hears in a feline's yowls that its celebrity blogger owner has been kidnapped. With help from her vivacious best friends and understanding crush, she finds the culprit, along with acceptance of her true self.

(Copyright 2012 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)