June 1, 2008
Little Cat lives in the subway tunnels of an unnamed Canadian city, subsisting on mice and garbage and the odd strangers kindness. Her story alternates between her own struggles for survival and her witness of the two-legs that come and go through her underground territory. Though a loner, Little Cat comes to know Candlewax, a homeless teen (so-called because he steals and sells candles from a local church), who is circling the perimeter of a local gang.She alsobecomes comfortable with Katherine, a young woman, dating the lord of a rival gang, who wants to take care of Little Cat, and befriends Candlewax in the bargain. Little Cats battles with the vermin she encounters are sharp and visceral, and Cookes descriptions are cut as surely and deeply as the fangs and claws of her character. The gangland warfare seems doubly menacing juxtaposed with Little Cats vulnerability. Indeed, by givingreaders a unique, consistent perspective ondifficult, sometimes tragic circumstances, Cooke has crafted a gripping, evocative story that is sure to resonate.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2008, American Library Association.)