Fantasy

Kind-hearted Bernie’s barn is filled with rescued animals- two horses, a rooster, some hens, and Muscovy duck. One autumn day, a rough looking tom cat named Whittington ambles into Bernie’s barnyard and convinces Lady, the duck-in-charge, to let him stay. The old battered tom quickly solves the barn’s rat problem and secures himself a home. When a huge snowstorm hits, the animals are stuck in the barn. To ease their boredom, Whittington tells them the story of his namesake Dick Whittington, a fourteenth century orphan turned merchant and traveler who becomes quite wealthy by following the advice of his traveling companion- a cat. Dick’s cat was the Whittington’s direct ancestor. Soon Bernie’s grandchildren, Ben and Abby, join in the daily storytelling session. Ben is dyslexic, and his struggles at school often leave him angry and discouraged. As Ben listens to the tales of courage and industry, he decides that he, too, can work hard to overcome his reading problem.
©2024 Kathy Maxwell at https://bookskidslike.com ( )

fair?

There are two parallel stories here: one is about a stray cat who finds a new home in the barn of a kindly farmer, and how the cat and the other animals help the farmer's grandson learn how to read. The other is a story-within-a-story, told by the cat about his ancestor, who was the pet of Dick Whittington, the famous London trader.
Both tales are well told and complement each other nicely, and all the characters are the root-for-from-the-start sort. Recommended. ( )

This is one of those Newbery Honor books that just makes me say, "Why?"
There are three stories in this book. One is the story of a stray cat, Whittington, who joins a bunch of barnyard animals in a barn. The second is the story of two children, grandchildren of the owner of the barn and the animals. The children go to the barn regularly and talk to the animals. (The children can understand the animals talking and vice versa.) The boy struggles with dyslexia and is fighting to pass his grade. The third story is a tale that Whittington tells to the other animals and the children - the story of Dick Whittington, a boy who lived in medieval England, and had a cat, who was Whittington's great-great ever so great grandmother.
The Dick Whittington tale the cat tells is OK, though nothing spectacular. The dyslexic boy story and the talking barnyard animals stories are just rather dull. And worst of all, the three stories have virtually nothing to do with each other. There is a little smidge of Dick inspiring the boy to learn to read, but it's a stretch to be sure. ( )