by Moe Zilla

Created on: March 06, 2010

It's a family of cats - did I forget to mention that? Father cat wears spectacle, a bow tie, and an overcoat. The spare-but-colorful illustrations are by Aliki, and apparently there's a whole series of books about the two kitten children, Edward and Elizabeth. The stories are written by her husband, Franz Brandenberg, and they dedicated this one to their own children, Jason and Alex, "and all the rest of the passengers." And pretty soon you start to wonder if their stories are coming from their own family.

"We don't new a new car," said Father. "Our old one is good enough…"

His two children are fascinated with the idea of getting a new car - because after all, their neighbors just got one. The kids list out their grievances - rusty hubcaps, dented bumpers - and even Mother points out that the exhaust backfires and the engines make a funny noise. But Elizabeth make the ultimate argument: "And worst of all, it's not even a car - it's a van." (The title of the book?  "What's Wrong with a Van?")

I should stop calling them kids, because they're kittens - but this cat family leads a very domesticated life! Father leaves the family with an ominous "we'll see." And then the rest of the cat family starts to remember all their good times in the van. "We played in it, we ate in it, we sometimes even slept in it," remembers little Elizabeth kitten. "We did everything except have parties in it."

Of course I couldn't help thinking: I know some people who've done that, too…

I asked myself if this book was written in the 1960s.  (No. It was published in 1987.) Then I asked myself if it was published by Volkswagen. (No again…) It's as innocent as it sounds, blissfully ignoring whatever adult readers may already feel about life with a van. "We took great trips in it," remembers Edward kitten.  "We visited our grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins… We drove to the shore and the mountains in it."

And Aliki supplies a simple illustrations for each memory…

Is there a page missing? Or are they just assuming that Father cat has gone off to sell the car. Because he promises them "you'll be surprised" when they ask if the new car is as good as the old one. And sure enough, it's got shiny new paint, undented bumpers, and hubcaps which aren't rusty. But Father cat pulled the obvious switcheroo - and just spruced up the one that they'd had.

"I'm glad it's a van and not just a car," says Elizabeth.

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