Millions of Cats

1. Bibliography

Gag, Wanda. 1928. Milllions of Cats. Ill. by Wanda Gag. New York, NY: Penguin Putnam.

 ISBN 0-698-11363

2. Plot Summary

In this cute little story of an old man and woman the old man ventures out in search of a cat to take home to his wife. When he discovers what he’s looking for he actually find “Hundreds of cats, thousands of cats, millions and billions and trillions of cats.” With so many to choose from, the old man cannot decide upon one single cat to take home. The old man invites all the cats to come with him on his journey home and when he reaches his destination his wife is overwhelmed by the number of cats and decides that they cannot possibly take care of all the cats. The husband and wife decide to let the cats decide which one of them is the most beautiful, but this only causes the cats to argue and fight amongst themselves. When all of the fighting is done there is only one homely little kitten left. The couple takes the cat in and loves and cares for it until it becomes beautiful.

3. Critical Analysis

Wanda Gag created this story over 80 years ago and it is still enjoyed today. The illustrations are black and white depictions that span across the pages and have great details for showing the country side along the old man’s journey as well as the different features of all the cats.

The story is fun to follow along and read aloud as it has a repetitive sequence of words that flow well together when talking about the enormous amount of cats that the old man encounters. At the end of the story when all the other cats have gobbled each other up and the one lone kitten is found there is a moment of surprise for the reader. Even though the last cat is not the most beautiful the love and care of the old couple helps change the cat into becoming the most beautiful cat the old couple has seen. This metamorphoses for the cat is a reminder that beauty is in the eye of the beholder and the more you love and cherish something, the more beautiful it becomes.

4. Review Excerpts

Newbery Honor 1929

Wanda Gag posthumous recieved the 1958 Lewis Carroll Shelf Award for Millions of Catsand the 1977 Kerlan Award for the body of her work.

A classic, that could make anyone a cat lover. – Pat Vasilik

5. Connections

* A book about becoming beautiful and seeing the beauty within. Pinky and Rex and the Just-Right Pet is a similar story where the young character is wanting the right pet.

Howe, James.2001. Pinky and Rex and the Just-Right Pet. Ill by Melissa Sweet. New York, NY: Simon and Schuster.  ISBN: 978-0689839429

*Other books by Wanda Gag

Gag, Wanda. 1931. Snippy and Snappy. Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press.  ISBN: 978-0816642458