Arthur’s Cat coming March 10th, 2026 from Eerdmans Books for Young Readers; 40 pages
About the Author: “Johan Leynaud is a French artist, illustrator, and author who studied at the Beaux-Arts de Marseille and spends most of his time drawing. He hopes Arthur’s Cat, his English-language debut, will help children respect animals as living beings who sometimes need their space. One day Johan watched his niece play with her cat—and Arthur’s Cat began to grow in his mind” (Bio from author’s Bookshop profile).
Find Johan Leynaud on the following platforms:
About the Translator: “Sarah Ardizzone has translated over fifty books from the French, including Thread by Thread, Sweet Dreamers, and Letters from Bear (all Eerdmans). Her translations have been named to best-of-the-year lists by Kirkus, School Library Journal, and the Bank Street College of Education. Sarah lives in Brixton, England, with her family and a fluffy black cat named Hector” (Bio from translator’s Bookshop profile).
Find Sarah Ardizzone on the following platforms:
Arthur is a young boy who loves his cat Zeffo and wants to do everything with him! He wants to play pretend with him, read him stories, brush his fur, and play hide-and-seek. Really, Arthur just wants to be close to his furry friend. But Zeffo keeps his distance, always running off whenever Arthur gets too close. One day, Arthur decides to do what he really wants: he tries to give Zeffo a hug. But Zeffo does not want to be hugged, and Zeffo pushes Arthur away. Now Arthur is left wondering, will Zeffo ever come close to him again?
I really enjoyed reading Arthur’s Cat. I found the story extremely relatable as someone who owned cats growing up; Zeffo reminded me of one cat in particular, down to the scratching to enforce boundaries. I wasn’t particularly taken by the prose of this story, and the flow felt a little off to me at times. However, I don’t think that’s going to be a detriment to any young readers, and in fact the tempo of the story will likely benefit those reading it aloud to a younger audience. I can easily imagine young readers being enraptured by Leynaud’s illustrations, which really bring the story to life. My eyes flowed along the pages seamlessly and I think the large amount of negative space really conveyed the distance between Zeffo and Arthur that Arthur was trying to shrink. But what I enjoyed most about the book was the color choices of the illustrations! I thought it was very clever to use orange for Arthur’s character and blue for Zeffo. Blue and orange are complimentary colors and it’s a nice way to show how opposite their personalities and their needs are. It can be a nice way to introduce complimentary colors to a younger audience, alongside the theme of respecting boundaries. And I do believe that’s an important theme to highlight for younger readers, as I imagine there’s many of them out there like Arthur, who want to just hug and play with their pets without realizing that their pet may not want that themself. Overall this was a pleasant read, and this book might just save a young reader from the consequences of crossing a cat’s boundaries.
Arthur’s Cat releases on March 10th, 2026.
Pine Reads Review would like to thank Eerdmans Books for Young Readers for sending us an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Any quotes are taken from an advanced copy and may be subject to change before final publication.
Grace McCool, Pine Reads Review Writer & Editor