No, No, Nora!
by D. M. Darroch
illustrated by Sara Parrett
Date: 2019
Publisher: Sleepy Cat Press
Reading level: C
Book type: picture book
Pages: 32
Format: e-book
Source: NetGalley
Nora is a not-so-big cat who shares her not-so-big house with a woman, a man, and a sharp-eyed boy. She alone knows that the legendary cheese thief Gustave has invaded the house. The harder Nora tries to protect her family, the more they believe her to be naughty and destructive. But when marauding aliens descend upon the not-so-big town, only Nora's little cat powers can save the day.
No, No, Nora! is a storybook about the love and loyalty of our animal friends served with a healthy dollop of humor.
(synopsis from Goodreads)
This book just isn't for me. I struggled with it even when it was just a book about a cat who gets in trouble for trying to protect the house and its contents from a wily mouse. But I was completely unable to find any love for this book after the aliens came into the picture. That part was just so silly, nonsensical, and contrived that I couldn't understand the point of it all.
Why are the aliens "dishonest"? We're told this more than once, but they appear to simply be harvesting natural resources (just like humans do all the time without being accused of dishonesty). How did the mouse get into the spaceship at the end? How does cheese dust protect an alien ship from being detected? Too many unanswered questions...
The stupid (the idea of a finger-sized laser pointer being able to fit into a cat's nostril) is somewhat offset by the clever (the aliens' spaceships looking like cheese graters, which I found amusing), but not enough for me to really enjoy this one. Some kids might find the ridiculous story funny, but there are probably others who won't want to slog through all the text for such a silly payoff.
Thank you to NetGalley and Sleepy Cat Press for providing a digital ARC.
Premise: 2/5
Meter: n/a
Writing: 3/5
Illustrations: 2/5
Originality: 3/5
Enjoyment: 2/5
Overall: 2.33 out of 5
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