It was cute, and I love Bill the Cat, but mostly it just made me want to go and read The Last Basselope, which is possibly the only other Berkeley Breathed book I've read and always reminds me of my childhood whenever I read it. ( )

It was cute, and I love Bill the Cat, but mostly it just made me want to go and read The Last Basselope, which is possibly the only other Berkeley Breathed book I've read and always reminds me of my childhood whenever I read it.

Berkeley Breathed, creator of the immensely popular Bloom County cartoon-strip, which ran from 1980 through 1989, before being recently revived in 2015, turns in this picture-book to the origin-story of Bill the Cat, one of the most recognizable figures in his created world. Although meant to be the best friend of Binkley, Bill is at first detained by circumstance, finding himself an arctic sled-cat, an Egyptian deity, and an alien kidnapee, before finally being reunited with his intended human companion, through the kindness of Opus the penguin.

A madcap adventure that is sure to appeal to long-time Bloom County fans, I'm not sure that The Bill the Cat Story is completely successful as a stand-alone picture-book. Although full of hilarious moments that are sure to entertain the general reader, overall I felt that as someone who never read this cartoon strip that I was missing out on quite a bit of the fun. Still, there were moments that had me chuckling - the scene in which Bill meets Garfield (of whom he is a parody) on the alien ship! - and I did enjoy the story. I'm on the fence a bit, but this is one I'd primarily recommend to those readers who are already Bloom County fans. ( )

I love Bill the Cat. My only complaint is that it wasn't longer... ( )

Filled with his usual wit and humor, Berkeley Breathed tells the origin of Bloom County's very own Bill the Cat in this clever book. Masquerading as a children's picture book, The Bill the Cat Story is really written for Breathed's long-time fans (tho kids will enjoy the illustrations and the not surprisingly touching message), and I'm looking forward to more Bloom County picture books. ( )