Review by Stacy_Morgan -- Diary of a Snoopy Cat

[Stacy_Morgan]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Diary of a Snoopy Cat" by R.F. Kristi.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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What happens when a cat decides to become a detective? Four cats? Four cats and two dogs? Four cats, two dogs, and one hamster? Diary of a Snoopy Cat, that's what.

Diary of a Snoopy Cat is the fifth book in the Inca Cat (fictional) book series. It is possible to read this book as a standalone, however. I am reviewing it as such because that's how I read it; with no knowledge of the previous four books.

Inca, self-proclaimed head of the household, has recently helped her doggie friend, Terrance, solve a mystery (along with help from her brother and sister). Now, bitten by the detective bug, she dreams of becoming known far and wide. What happens when Boss, a neighboring Rottweiler, reports a mysterious missing will? With Terrance and his master in the Himalayas searching for the missing husband of a friend, this Siberian kitty takes it upon herself to solve the mystery. Oh, and lets the others help. A little bit.

What I enjoyed most about this book is, while meant for children, the story was so well written and executed that it kept my attention captured. Kudos to R. F. Kristi! This is quite a feat and speaks highly of Ms. Kristi's story-weaving talents. Especially as she makes it seem effortless.

While the story was good, the book itself would have benefitted from another editor's read-through. There are awkward paragraph breaks, unfinished sentences, missing commas, subject and verb disagreements, and even a couple homophone switches. There are also certain places where some letters or symbols seem thrown in randomly. For example: "Low,en ITC"ance is coming over." [sic] Due to the context, I was able to gather that it was supposed to be "Lance is coming over." I understand if this is just collateral from switching from Word Doc to PDF or MOBI to EPUB or the like. However, as this format was a version offered to review, I would be amiss not to mention it. This was my least favorite part; it was a bit of a jarring exit back to reality to be reading and have things like this appear for me to attempt to decipher before continuing.

I give a big thumbs up to Jorge Valle, as well. The small, scattered illustrations are adorable, well-paced, and add a bit more depth to the story. There are enough to keep the book engaging to the younger ages, without having so many that it seems like a picture book.

Overall, I give Diary of a Snoopy Cat 3 out of 4 stars. The story was good, but the grammar and structure should've been given a bit more attention and effort.

Would I recommend the story? Yes. To be read by whom? That's a bit of a challenge to answer. With the grammatical and technical issues mentioned above, it may be difficult for young minds to follow. I feel that the storyline is worth it, however. With this in mind, I would recommend this story be read /to/ animal-loving children and those with adventurous hearts. For newly independent readers, I'd suggest having an adult helper nearby.

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Diary of a Snoopy Cat
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