Linda Smith is the excellent author of (among other titles) Mrs Crump's Cat and Mrs Biddlebox. During a Haystack workshop Marla Frazee told us some heart wrenching stories about working on the art for Biddlebox while Linda was losing her memory and life to cancer. I love Mrs. Biddlebox more than ever now, but can't get through it without crying. As long as I never meet David Roberts maybe I can get through the delightful Mrs. Crump's Cat without bawling.

NOT just because this is the story of an exquisite yellow cat that closely resembles my exquisite ginger haired felon/cat. The text is crisp, lyrical and funny as I assume all of Linda's books are. David's illustrations are wonderfully lanky, spot on glimpses into my ideal home and village (looks like a British drizzle and tea cozy kind of place to me.)

The book is tall and he makes excellent use of the page height in every spread. Roberts does some great things with perspective and layout--delightful triptych panels that I'd love to see more of in other books. Mrs. Crump (and her bosom) and her new cat have some excellent expressions and I recommend this book EVEN to dog lovers.