Four Fierce Kittens (Orchard Paperbacks) - Softcover

Joyce Dunbar has published more than 80 books. Translated into 20 languages, she is best known for her lively and quirky picture books stories, with their wide emotional range. She has, as Philippa Pearce once said in a review, 'a passionate authenticity of imagination.' She revels in the joy of language, the playfulness of words, and in seeing her work fabulously brought to life by world class illustrators. She has written many stories for radio and television and contributed to several anthologies.

In an elaboration on the model set forth in Flack's Angus and the Ducks (1930), four kittens brave the world. Each tries to scare a farm animal with the sound of a jungle animal, but comes up with only an ineffective ``miaow''; in the end, they're all chased by geese--but then, hissing and spitting, manage to frighten a pup. Several animal voices are neatly worked into the nicely shaped story, affording young listeners a chance to join in; in the simple pen and watercolor illustrations, the animals are lively and genuinely cute, without sentimentality. A good choice for the youngest story group. (Picture book. 2-6) -- Copyright ©1992, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.